Background: As healthcare continues to shift from hospitals to community settings, it is vital to prepare nursing students for community-based care, including home health.
Design and objectives: This exploratory descriptive qualitative study examined students' experiences with a home health escape room and their perceptions of how the experience affected their learning.
Methods: To escape the simulated apartment residence, student teams solved three challenges related to fall risks, food insecurity, and polypharmacy. Sixteen baccalaureate nursing students participated in focus groups and thematic analysis was conducted.
Results: Four themes emerged: Being in the home and taking it all in; Elements that maximized thinking; Practicing and reflecting on teamwork; and Using lessons learned.
Conclusions: Simulated escape rooms offer a unique way to provide experiential learning to prepare students for home health clinical experiences.
Keywords: Community health; Escape room; Home health; Prelicensure nursing education; Simulation.
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