Black Cloud: Nursing Critical Thinking Game

Black Cloud Game™ is an immersive board game developed by Children’s Mercy Hospital, and designed to help hone critical thinking skills related to the practice of nursing in medical-surgical and critical care settings.

In Black Cloud Game™, players take on the role of nurses tasked with managing a designated number of patients during their shift. Each player navigates through patient scenarios, utilizing their clinical knowledge, delegation confidence, and prioritization skills to provide optimal care.

At the start of their shift, players organize their tasks and patient care plans, strategizing to address varying acuities and medical needs using teamwork and appropriate resources. However, as the game progresses, unexpected challenges arise with the introduction of “black cloud” cards. These cards disrupt the initial plan, simulating real-life scenarios where nurses must adapt and reprioritize in the face of emergent situations.

With the situation cards tailored to medical-surgical and critical care nursing, Black Cloud Game™ prompts players to engage in discussions and decision-making processes that mirror the complexities of clinical practice. By navigating through diverse patient scenarios and unexpected challenges, players develop the critical thinking skills necessary for effective nursing care delivery.

Black Cloud Game™ can be used for individual skill development or group training sessions and fosters meaningful conversations among players, encouraging them to articulate their reasoning behind task prioritization and patient management. Leaders can create additional tasks and resources unique to the players’ nursing environment for even more realistic scenarios. Through interactive gameplay, nurses gain valuable insights into their decision-making processes, enhancing their ability to juggle multiple tasks and patient acuities with confidence and competence.

Black Cloud Game™ is an educational and information tool and does not serve and should not be used as a substitute for a health care professional’s advice, judgment or training.

Game contents: • 4 sets of 4 gameboards for individual or small group playing • Instruction Sheet for game play • 70 Starter cards with patient scenarios • 35 Critical Care Black Cloud scenario cards • 33 Medical-Surgical Black Cloud scenario cards • 6 game tokens signifying resources available to delegate to • 10 dry-erase “build your own” starter cards • 10 dry-erase “build your own” critical care • 10 dry-erase “build your own” medical-surgical • 10 dry-erase “build your own” resource tokens