Exploring the experiences of domiciliary caregivers simulating the role of care recipients.

Aim: To find out if an immersive simulation intervention would be feasible in a domiciliary care context, and to explore what effect, if any, the intervention would have on the domiciliary caregivers who participated.

Method: This was an immersive simulation pilot project in which six domiciliary caregivers (simulants) assumed the profile of people receiving domiciliary care. Second-year and third-year nursing students provided domiciliary care to the simulants, with support from a registered nurse. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes from post-intervention semi-structured interviews and a focus group with the simulants.

Findings: Five main themes were identified: recognising the need for stimulation; reflecting on the importance of person-centred communication; the value of companionship and confidence in caregivers; understanding boundaries and vulnerabilities; and empathy and practice changes. Following the intervention, most of the simulants reported that they re-examined the care they provide from the care recipient's perspective, and were increasingly attuned to the wishes of care recipients.

Conclusion: The findings of this pilot project suggest that immersive simulation could be a valuable intervention in the domiciliary care context. The feedback from simulants suggests that it is beneficial to provide domiciliary caregivers with the opportunity to assume the role of care recipients, and enables them to reflect on the complexity and value of the care that they provide. The findings indicate that important elements of ethical care include domiciliary caregivers having adequate time to deliver care and develop trust, which can assist in fostering effective caregiver-care recipient relationships.