Competency Tool for Nursing evaluation, CCEI 2.0, goes global with Laerdal partnership

PRESS RELEASE

Competency Tool for Nursing evaluation, CCEI 2.0, goes global with Laerdal partnership

Laerdal Medical is expanding access to one of the most validated tools in nursing simulation education: the Creighton Competency Evaluation Instrument^© (CCEI) 2.0.  

Developed by nurse educators at Creighton University, CCEI 2.0 provides a reliable, evidence-based method for assessing clinical competence—helping bridge the gap between academic learning and real-world practice.  

Used across all 50 U.S. states and in more than 30 countries, the tool is now being scaled globally through Laerdal’s training, distribution, and simulation expertise.  

Assess in real time  

"At Laerdal, we believe that empowering nursing educators with valid and reliable assessment tools is vital for developing competent healthcare professionals," says Michael Sautter, Chief Learning Officer at Laerdal Medical.  

"Our collaboration with Creighton University allows us to expand the reach of the Creighton Competency Evaluation Instrument^©, ensuring that faculty worldwide have access to the necessary training and resources to implement it effectively."

The tool is designed to assess essential behaviors in real time—emphasizing clinical judgment, safety, communication, and more. Educators can track student performance, offer immediate feedback, and identify program-wide gaps using aggregated data.

Groundbreaking tool  

"Through Laerdal, we're meeting schools where they are—giving them tools they can trust to assess competence in meaningful ways," says Dr. Julie Manz of Creighton.  

When Martha Todd, PhD, APRN-NP, FNP-BC, and Julie Manz, PhD, RN, created the original Creighton Simulation Evaluation instrument (CSEI), they were working decades ahead of their time, unaware that their groundbreaking tool would one day be adopted on an international scale through a partnership with Laerdal Medical.

The 2.0 version places a higher emphasis on clinical judgement, is applicable in acute care and public health, and can also be used in graduate nursing education. The team has published on the conceptual framework and initial validity testing of the tool. Additional validity and reliability testing of the tool with prelicensure nursing students in simulation has been completed. Current research is underway to test the tool with advanced practice nursing students in high-fidelity simulation and with standardized patients.    

Together, Laerdal and Creighton are advancing a shared vision: to ensure every nurse is practice-ready—because readiness saves lives.