Stony Brook University Medical Center: Simulating Care

Stony Brook University Medical Center recently began experimenting with computerized simulations to aid medical students with their medical training. The University Hospital has recently opened a simulation laboratory which allows medical students to deal with a trauma or diagnostic situation in which a robotic mannequin, acting as their patient, can talk, exhibit symptoms, breathe and even die.

The laboratory is located within the Clinical Skills Center at the Health Sciences Center. Sean Kavanaugh is the chief technician for the lab. "I facilitate training simulations for the medical students and for the residents," said Kavanaugh. His average day consists of around two simulations in which he controls the mannequin and its vitals as well as doing some acting on the part of the mannequin. "I. . . I feel sick. I think I'm gonna throw up," said Kavanaugh as he spoke into a microphone acting as the mannequin's voice during a simulation. He moved his hands over to his computer's keyboard and "crashed" the dummy. Bells and alarms went off in the simulation room as the mannequin simulated a heart attack. Brian Cho, one of the four medical students involved in the simulation, grabbed the crash cart and proceeded to shock the arresting mannequin back to life. The alarms tapered off and the beeping began to sound like a healthy patient on NBC's ER. They saved him.

"[Outside of a simulation] you don't really get monitor their vitals, you know use a crash cart, intubate or anything like that. Here we have to do everything on one person, it helps us integrate everything we learn," said Cho shortly after the simulation ended. This type of training technique fully immerses students in a trauma situation, but eliminates risk or consequence. Mark Ferrante, another student involved in the simulation said "If you do screw up, you don't have to be afraid of hurting a real person."

Kavanaugh then took a couple of reporters into the laboratory to show them how the mannequin worked. "An air compressor delivers air, through a series of hoses to different parts of the mannequin." The movement of air is also regulated by the compressor, so if Kavanaugh told the mannequin to have a pulse of 80, the compressor would move the air in such away that when a student took a pulse with their hand they would be able to calculate a true pulse of 80.

The mannequin is also customizable for various simulations. "There was one simulation where the mannequin was supposed to have been a victim of a motorcycle accident. I took his leg off and made him bleed and the medical students had to save him," said Kavanaugh. You can push any fluid through two sets of hoses contained within the dummy. Kavanaugh uses these hoses to create a bleeding affect and it allows medical students to practice starting intravenous treatment and administering medication.

Although Kavanaugh is the technical expert for the lab it also has medical professionals operating the simulations. Perrylynn Baldelli is the Director of the Clinical Skills Center. Currently, the facility is being used predominantly by doctors and medical students in training to become doctors, but Baldelli is pushing for nurses, physician assistants and medical students of all specialties to utilize the lab. "It [the Clinical Skills Center] is here to facilitate learning for all medical professionals."

New technology in the medical profession excites people like Baldelli and Kavanaugh. Baldelli said she sees doctors coming out of medical school knowing more, and having been exposed to more, which benefits patients everywhere. For non-medical people like Kavanaugh they maintain the sentiment "it could be me on the table one day, knowing this stuff exists I feel better."

Source:

Original Reporting and personal interviews