Patient Safety Improved by Medical Simulation

Patient safety and improved clinical outcomes are among every healthcare provider's highest priorities. From the moment a medical learner enters school to the last day of his or her residency—and during every day of active practice, the clinician must uphold the ethical values of great healthcare delivery, exhibit refined cognitive reasoning aptitude, and prescribe courses of treatment which will best benefit the patient. But between school and the office, how can a cliniciandevelopthese requirements? And beyond that, how can mastered be achieved? Medical simulation, as a part of a robust clinical education, is a great place to start.

Modern applications of medical simulation can be traced back to the use of simulation in other high-stakes industries such as aviation (flight simulators) and the military (combat training). The goal of all types of simulation is skill development.The learner trains and learns from mistakes in a safe environment: at no point during a flight simulation is an actual plane in danger of crashing or causing passenger injuries due to pilot error, and likewise, the clinical learner using medical simulation can build assessment, diagnosis, critical thinking, and communication skills without ever jeopardizing the health and wellbeing of a real patient.

And when it comes to treating real patients, clinicians must draw from traditional education, theoretical knowledge, and historical precedent – all gained through bookwork and lectures, and dependent on rote memorization and linguistic intelligence. Further, they must draw from learner-centered experiences which build critical reasoning skills and muscle memory within the boundaries of a medical simulation event. A superior medical education program will not only offer both sides of the clinical learning spectrum—it will bridge them and produce well-rounded practicing clinicians.

Various types of simulators and simulated experiences can be a part of a medical simulation curriculum, including high-fidelity human patient simulators (mannequins), low-fidelity simulators, complex task trainers, partial task trainers, virtual reality scenarios, standardized patients (SPs), and peer or faculty role-players.

Human patient simulators for medical simulation take many forms, from a baby to a child, mature male to a geriatric female—or even a birthing simulator which includes a mother and newborn.

When a learner takes part in a medical simulation scenario with a human patient simulator, they're able to interact by asking and responding to questions, observing a live vital signs monitor, making clinical observations and assessments, administering drugs, and even providing physical care interventions such as chest compressions and intubations. The simulator, controlled by an operator, might speak, bleed, or experience seizures, and respond in real time to the learner's comments and activities. And when the medical simulation scenario takes place within a realistic clinical environment such as a simulated IC or ER hospital ward, the learner experiences a suspension of disbelief and acts and reacts as if a real patient's life is on the line.

Medical simulation scenarios involving SPs or actors also offer a heightened level of realism for the learner. For a given event, the SP will have studied a particular medical case to the point where he or she can portray it accurately and with great consistency. The learner can ask and respond to questions about the patient's health and history, make physical examinations, and offer a diagnoses or course of treatment. And because SPs can observe the learner on a one-to-one basis and report on their communication skills, display of empathy, and deployment of clinical care. Perhaps the only downside of medical simulation with SPs is the cost and availability of a diverse group of actors, though some medical education programs are looking to their schools' affiliated theatre programs and employing students to help realize their medical simulation goals at little or no additional cost.

SPs and human patient simulators can also be used together within a single medical simulation event for even greater impact. For instance, simulation administrators could control a simulated baby while an SP portrays the mother. The learner would be able to hone clinical and critical thinking skills to treat the baby, and at the same time hone communication skills during interactions with the mother—two intertwined sets of skills that will be invaluable during actual clinical practice.

However it is used, with human patient simulators or SPs (or both), medical simulation can make a positive impact on clinical education because learners train in a safe environment, and make and learn from mistakes without ever putting a real patient at risk. And when the time comes for the learner to participate in active, actual practice, he or she will be better prepared to deliver quality care for improved patient outcomes.

About The Author:

The author of the article has an extensive experience in the field of Medical Simulation and Nursing Simulation Scenarios.

The author of the article has an extensive experience in the field of Simulation and Deliberate Practice.