DEI toolkit leads nation in inclusive sim education
By Ted Gregory
Photos by Lukas Keapproth
In recent years, as diversity, equity, and inclusion gained traction in public and private institutions, Associate Professor Carol Kostovich began giving more serious thought to building a structured, comprehensive DEI approach in simulation at the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
So, she applied for and received a prestigious $25,000 grant—one of only two awarded in 2022 by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Foundation for Academic Nursing’s Faculty Scholars Grant Program. A few months later, Kostovich who oversees simulation at Loyola Nursing, began incorporating changes to the program.
The changes led to the launch of a DEI toolkit for simulation that can be used by U.S. nursing schools.
The goal is to share the DEI toolkit, which supports faculty members as they design simulated experiences for students to care for diverse populations, nationally and internationally.
For years, Loyola Nursing has educated students to embrace patient diversity and determine if all patients are receiving equitable and inclusive care, Clinical Assistant Professor Joanne Dunderdale said.
“It’s a natural thing to talk about diversity, equity, and inclusion in our nursing program,” she said. “However, as we analyzed our simulations, we found that we lacked some diversity, that we needed to include more people and more stories, all while not stereotyping. That can be a really tough line to walk but we’re using so many resources to get it right.”
Kostovich said the DEI simulation DEI toolkit leads nation in inclusive sim education toolkit considers different identity factors and “every type of diversity that our patients could present to us” that would affect a patient’s care plan. Those include language, cultural background, race, sexual orientation, health literacy, relationship status, spiritual beliefs, occupation, education, and housing.
“We talk about acknowledging those faith traditions,” she said, “and supporting a patient on their health care journey within those faith traditions that they believe.”
Broadening the sim experience
Loyola’s simulation program already has changed as a result of the grant. New resources include manikins with a range of skin tones, along with props, clothing, and scripts to add realism to the patient’s story. Video recordings of subject matter experts sharing their stories help students understand how identity factors impact a patient’s health and health care decisions.
Among those are interviews with a Native American patient and the parent of a child with a neurodivergent disorder about their experiences in the health care system. The school has also brought in experts in neurodivergent disorders and LGBTQ+ populations to enhance the knowledge of simulation faculty.
“All of our simulations include DEI elements and play a part in having our nursing students dig a little bit deeper into their own persona of why they chose Loyola and are becoming a Loyola nurse,” Dunderdale said. “And, to me, that’s what defines a Loyola nurse.”
By Ted Gregory
Photos by Lukas Keapproth
In recent years, as diversity, equity, and inclusion gained traction in public and private institutions, Associate Professor Carol Kostovich began giving more serious thought to building a structured, comprehensive DEI approach in simulation at the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
So, she applied for and received a prestigious $25,000 grant—one of only two awarded in 2022 by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Foundation for Academic Nursing’s Faculty Scholars Grant Program. A few months later, Kostovich who oversees simulation at Loyola Nursing, began incorporating changes to the program.
The changes led to the launch of a DEI toolkit for simulation that can be used by U.S. nursing schools.
The goal is to share the DEI toolkit, which supports faculty members as they design simulated experiences for students to care for diverse populations, nationally and internationally.
For years, Loyola Nursing has educated students to embrace patient diversity and determine if all patients are receiving equitable and inclusive care, Clinical Assistant Professor Joanne Dunderdale said.
“It’s a natural thing to talk about diversity, equity, and inclusion in our nursing program,” she said. “However, as we analyzed our simulations, we found that we lacked some diversity, that we needed to include more people and more stories, all while not stereotyping. That can be a really tough line to walk but we’re using so many resources to get it right.”
Kostovich said the DEI simulation DEI toolkit leads nation in inclusive sim education toolkit considers different identity factors and “every type of diversity that our patients could present to us” that would affect a patient’s care plan. Those include language, cultural background, race, sexual orientation, health literacy, relationship status, spiritual beliefs, occupation, education, and housing.
“We talk about acknowledging those faith traditions,” she said, “and supporting a patient on their health care journey within those faith traditions that they believe.”
Broadening the sim experience
Loyola’s simulation program already has changed as a result of the grant. New resources include manikins with a range of skin tones, along with props, clothing, and scripts to add realism to the patient’s story. Video recordings of subject matter experts sharing their stories help students understand how identity factors impact a patient’s health and health care decisions.
Among those are interviews with a Native American patient and the parent of a child with a neurodivergent disorder about their experiences in the health care system. The school has also brought in experts in neurodivergent disorders and LGBTQ+ populations to enhance the knowledge of simulation faculty.
“All of our simulations include DEI elements and play a part in having our nursing students dig a little bit deeper into their own persona of why they chose Loyola and are becoming a Loyola nurse,” Dunderdale said. “And, to me, that’s what defines a Loyola nurse.”