NAU Nursing Provides Simulation Training

The Wichita West nursing lab served as a simulation training site as part of a local simulation initiative to reduce patient risk and provide better training to medical professional students. The Mid-Continent Center for Health Care Simulation in Wichita is directing the initiative to increase simulation training for nursing, medical, and respiratory therapy students.  One key area is interprofessional development which brings the different medical staff personnel into one simulation experience so they can learn how to work as a team.  The initiative also brings together the staffing from local colleges and universities to collaborate on different simulation scenarios that will provide 4th year med and nursing students with a wide variety of experiences.  NAU’s nursing lab used three simulation manikins – a middle age man with heart attack,  a pregnant woman, and a child with tracheostomy tube & seizure history – and each can be programmed with symptoms to help students learn how to diagnose and treat patients.

Beth Bowman, NAU Nursing Foundation Coordinator, played the role of the “wife” of the heart attack man to add hysteria and drama to the experience for students to understand that families are a part of the medical crisis. The students get to use their critical thinking skills on how to handle family members and learn about delegating to other medical personnel to step in to help.  After each occurrence the group got together to debrief about the scenario’s.