Laurie Peachey has been teaching young nursing students for the past 15 years. The Assistant Professor at the School of Nursing at Nipissing University believes promoting more creativity in learning is an important factor when mentoring students.
"We have to do a better job of bringing the practicum and classroom theory together," she said.
Peachey believes students need to experience real nursing situations to understand what they are reading in textbooks.
The Nipissing assistant professor was recently recognized by the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario with the RNAO Leadership Award in Student Mentorship for her role in a child birth simulation lab she created.
The maternal-child simulation created by Peachey allows nursing students treat a child with bacterial meningitis.
"It increases their self-confidence," she said about the simulation.
“It allows them to perform skills that may have been left for more advanced learners or new grads entering the field."
Peachey even used the simulation during the Nipissing University Nursing Games back in 2017.
The event saw more than 200 students from various schools of nursing in Ontario converge on Nipissing to participate in a number of competitions.
Now, with a PhD in education under her belt, and still working as an assistant professor, Peachey looks forward to continuing to improve the simulation activities for students, and developing partnerships with hospitals to bring simulation into acute care settings.
