Presentation Skills

for Nurses
Teresa Knoop, MSN, RN, AOCN®
Assistant Director, Clinical Operations
Clinical Trials Shared Resource
Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center
Nashville, TN

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 Disclosures

No conflicts to disclose

Objectives

• Recognize a variety of ways that clinical information can be

presented.

• Identify guidelines to use when developing a clinical nursing

presentation.

• Identify skills necessary to deliver a dynamic and effective

presentation.

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 Presentations!!!

“According to most studies, people's number one fear is public

speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that
sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral,
you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy”
Jerry Seinfeld

Introduction

• Types of clinical information

• General guidelines for presenting clinical information

• Learning by example

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 Types of Clinical Information

Types of Clinical Information

• Clinical manifestations of disease

• Mechanism of action of treatment

• Adverse events related to treatment

• Management of clinical signs/symptoms/adverse events

• Patient education

• Case studies

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 General Guidelines for
Presenting Clinical Information

General Guidelines for

Presenting Clinical Information
• Prepare, prepare, prepare
– Several hours of prep for every one hour of presentation
– Evaluate the literature and ask yourself the questions you think the audience might ask
– Know your audience

• Define your purpose and organize your thoughts; be clear about your take-away message

• Practice, practice, practice

• Learn from your mistakes

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

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 General Guidelines for
Presenting Clinical Information
• Presentation components

– Introduction
• Powerful
• Captures attention
• Tell them what you are going to tell them; convey purpose

– Body
• Tell them

– Conclusion
• Tell them what you told them (what message do you want them to take away?)

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

General Guidelines for

Presenting Clinical Information
• Strategies for presenting clinical information

– Present a professional image

– Disclose any conflicts

– Use slides to your advantage

– Reference all material; even when taken from areas of public domain

– Know your audience

– Relate to the audience

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

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 General Guidelines for
Presenting Clinical Information
• Strategies for presenting clinical information

– Use analogies

– Create mental images to help people remember

– Use stories/real life experiences

– Use humor

– Ask for audience stories or experiences

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

General Guidelines for

Presenting Clinical Information
• Handling question and answer sessions

– Can cause anxiety due to fear of question you can’t answer or from fear of being
challenged

– Audience participation and questions are generally a complement to the speaker

– Prepare yourself as much as possible for potential questions (if you ask yourself
the question as you are preparing, be sure to look up the answer before the
presentation)

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

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 General Guidelines for
Presenting Clinical Information
• Handling question and answer sessions

– If a question seems hostile, briefly respond and offer to discuss after the
presentation

– If you do not know the answer, be honest and offer to look it up later and email it

– Don’t be afraid to be honest with the audience and do not try to bluff your way
though the answer

– Bring the audience back to the key points of the presentation

Vollmann,K (2005) AACN Clinical Issues

Learning by example

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Clinical Manifestations of Disease

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Mechanism of Action

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Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T cells
CAR-T

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/research/car-t-cells#living-
drug

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Adverse Events Related to Treatment

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 Checkpoint Inhibitors
Immune Related Adverse Events
• Potentially serious/life-threatening
• GI (diarrhea>colitis)
• Pulmonary (pneumonitis/interstitial lung
disease [ILD])
• Endocrine (thyroid, adrenal, pituitary)
• Liver (hepatitis)
• Kidney (nephritis)
• Skin
• Neuro
keytruda.com; opdivo.com; yervoy.com

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 Nursing Management of
Signs/Symptoms/Adverse Events

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 Patient Education

Checkpoint Inhibitors
Patient/Caregiver Education
• Dermatologic
• Rash

• GI:
• Diarrhea or more bowel movements than usual
• Blood in stool or dark, tarry stools
• Stomach pain or tenderness

• Lung:
• New/worsening cough
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
keytruda.com; opdivo.com; yervoy.com

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Case Studies

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 Presenting Case Studies
• Be concise and clear

• OK to read the case, but use inflection and further explanation

• Explain any unfamiliar concepts or word; don’t take familiarity for granted

• Know your audience

• Stick to the point of the case and don’t let the discussion get too far off track

• Use teachable moments

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 Conclusion

• Types of clinical information

– Recognize a variety of ways that clinical information can be presented.

• General guidelines
– Identify guidelines to use when developing a clinical nursing presentation.

• Learning by example
– Identify skills necessary to deliver a dynamic and effective presentation .

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 ?????

References
• Vollman K. AACN Enhancing Presentation Skills for the Advanced Practice
Nurse: Strategies for Success. 16(1):67–77, JAN 2005

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