Accreditation Requirements in Health Sciences
Nursing and allied health programs operate under strict accreditation standards (such as ACEN and CCNE) and state licensing board rules. Meeting these requirements means collecting documented feedback across multiple stages of a student's training: simulation labs, hospital clinical rotations, clinical instructor performance, graduation exit surveys, and employer reviews.
When a community college nursing program approached SurveyDIG, they were using general-purpose survey tools that were hard to coordinate. Student response rates were uneven, and their accreditor noted that students were receiving too many uncoordinated surveys.
Consolidating the Schedule and Connecting Data Sources
SurveyDIG worked with nursing leadership on two main priorities: organizing the survey calendar to reduce student survey fatigue, and integrating clinical data from outside the student information system.
1. A Coordinated Clinical Survey Schedule
Rather than sending uncoordinated questionnaires throughout the semester, the department structured an automated survey schedule:
- Simulation Lab Evaluations: Gathering student feedback on clinical simulations and debriefing sessions.
- Skills Lab Evaluations: Measuring student readiness on procedural skills before hospital placements begin.
- Clinical Agency & Hospital Site Reviews: Evaluating hospital environments and clinical instructor supervision.
- Nursing Exit Surveys: Assessing overall preparation and NCLEX readiness upon completing the program.
- Employer Feedback Surveys: Reaching out to hospital supervisors after graduation to evaluate graduate clinical competency.
2. Dual Data Feeds: Banner SIS + Secure External Uploads
Enrolled nursing students and course instructors synchronize automatically from Ellucian Banner. However, external stakeholder groups—such as hospital employer supervisors and graduates whose campus email addresses lapse after commencement—reside outside the campus SIS.
SurveyDIG used a dual-feed approach: Banner handles active student and instructor rosters automatically, while department coordinators upload external contact lists (including graduate personal emails and hospital employer contacts) through a secure cloud intake portal. This keeps post-graduation and employer feedback current without requiring manual data manipulation.
Protecting Anonymity with "Tracked Anonymous"
In clinical and professional education, respondents—whether students evaluating hospital sites or employers providing program feedback—need assurance that their candor won't affect grades or professional relationships.
SurveyDIG manages this through Tracked Anonymous functionality. The system confirms survey completion so automated reminders stop immediately, while keeping individual responses strictly unlinked and anonymous in all reports delivered to faculty, coordinators, and leadership.
This approach helped the nursing program meet accreditor requirements, reduce survey fatigue, and collect actionable feedback across its clinical partnerships.