Safety Course Descriptions
The Center for Simulation and Research at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center offers the following patient safety courses:
In-Situ Training
The Center for Simulation and Research at Cincinnati Children's is committed to improving group communication and patient safety in the clinical health care setting. The in situ simulation program conducts simulations in high risk clinical environments. Health care providers participate in simulations in their own clinical setting. The dictionary definition of "in-situ" is "in its original place". In-situ training occurs in the health care provider's own environment. With the incorporation of mobile Human Patient Simulators, in-situ training can duplicate complex clinical scenarios. This allows the team to identify latent system threats and enhance group teamwork and communication. This innovative training is a powerful teaching method that engages the entire health care team to promote learning and improve critical elements of patient safety.
Serious Safety Event (SSE) Reduction Courses
In 1999, the Institute of Medicine reported that approximately 44,000 – 98,000 patients die in hospitals every year as a result of medical errors. The IOM report increased awareness of the magnitude of medical error and the importance of teamwork training and communication in multidisciplinary teams. We are committed to reducing and preventing medical errors through multidisiplinary education and training. SSE reduction training incorporates technical and non technical skills required for potentially life threatening emergencies in high risk clinical simulations. Simulations are specific to a particular clinical environment (Emergency Department, ECMO, Critical Care, etc). All courses are required to have a mix of care givers that reflects the participants actual work teams.
ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation)
ECMO Simulation training is intended for all health care providers caring for ECMO patients. This course focuses on the technical and non-technical skills necessary to care for potentially life threatening ECMO emergencies.
In the simulated ECMO environment, participants diagnose and manage a critically ill infant or child during cannulation emergencies, ECMO circuit emergencies, and patient emergencies. A fully operational ECMO circuit and a human patient simulator respond real-time to participant interventions.
Simulation Facilitator Course
Each facitilator is required to participate in, and complete a facilitator course. This 8-hour course reviews the basic methodologies of simulation experiences, as well as adult learning theories and debriefing techniques. Similarly, each facilitator assumes the role of student and facilitator to ensure an understanding of each position. Experiential learning is critical to facilitating any simulation course; expounding on the art of debriefing and understanding the interactions of multidisciplinary teams and teamwork.
The course is comprised of pre-course work including:
- Reviewing the literature pertaining to simulation in medicine, adult learning theory and debriefing strategies
- Viewing the pre-course, on-line presentation which overviews components of serious safety events as well as understanding technical and non-technical (behaviors) skills, to be assessed during actual simulation experiences
During the actual course, facilitators will review the following:
- Definition of simulation in medicine
- Technology driven learning
- Experiential learning
Through actual simulations, facilitators will practice:
- Teaching points; technical and non-technical skill identification
- Briefing students on simulation and scenarios
- Debriefing students; encouraging reflection; considering positive and non-positive group interactions through video reviews
- Developing team ideas and implementing future multidisciplinary initiatives
- Quality Improvement of simulation courses and feedback interpretation
Post-coursework includes:
- Attending and participating in further debriefings to gain confidence and understand other facilitator's methods of debriefings
Learning outcomes for each facilitator are measured consistently throughout their sessions, looking for many areas of positive impact on student knowledge, as well as areas of improvement in presentation and facilitation. Outcomes which are identified during a facilitator's evaluation include:
- Conveying understanding of simulation training models
- Demonstrating an appropriate level of knowledge and comprehension which is necessary to facilitate a simulation session
- Identify key learning opportunities with students, utilizing adult learning theory and experiential learning models
- Actively assist in the organization of and follow-through of a simulation session
- Effectively utilize debriefing theory and skills in simulation sessions
- Look for methods of improvement, reflecting on course components and experiences, which may need modification or review
Following the initial 8-hour session, each facilitator will spend additional hours of practicing in the role as facilitator through additional simulation sessions. Each facilitator will then continue in a primary role, with consistent evaluation and remediation or updates in their position of facilitator.
