Impact of a standardized patient simulation on undergraduate nursing student knowledge and perceived competency of the care of a patient diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Background: Undergraduate nursing students may not have the opportunity to assess and intervene with a patient diagnosed with schizophrenia during their clinical rotation. Provision of a standardized patient simulation experience affords students this opportunity in a safe setting without risk to the patient or student.

Methods: A quasi-experimental design was utilized to explore the impact of the addition of a standardized patient simulation scenario depicting a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia on undergraduate nursing student knowledge and perceived competency.