Registered Nursing Program In the News
Students fine-tune skills on simulator
By Krista Imus, Staff writer.
Reprinted from Monitor - Thursday, March 8, 2007.
Students work on Ohlone’s human simulation Tuesday. Above, nursing student Ferd Rosales looks up from the mannequin while other students look on.
— Photo by Jack Husting.
“You learn more when you’re actively engaged,” said Kathy Dewan, an associate professor of the Ohlone nursing program, concerning the new human simulation in the college’s nursing program.
Ohlone’s human simulation is an authentic reenactment of a human with medical problem, which requires students to perform the role of a registered nurse. The human simulation is the virtual use of a computer in an anatomical model.
The human simulation is basically an advanced mannequin, of which there are two different types: low-fidelity and high-fidelity. Ohlone currently owns three low-fidelity simulations and are working on getting funding and money to buy the high-fidelity simulations.
The low-fidelity simulations help with skill development, capable of heart sounds, lung sounds, limited responses, and can be infused with liquids and medications. The high-fidelity simulations, however, also record sounds and sentences, program physiologic trends and responses, and can be programed to correspond responses to correct and incorrect student interventions. They also simulate real psychological functions and include realistic properties like a rising chest, detectable pulses and pupil changes.
Erica Dieker checks the simulation's breathing.
— Photo by Jack Husting.
The simulation is useful because “it allows students to practice communication, safety, delegation and an understanding of the disease process,” said Dewan. “A realistic situation can be created and the students treat the situation as they would in real life.” The scenario development makes sure students know curriculum, conceptualize active learning, and obtain peer input.
A recent practice on the simulation occurred on campus. During the demonstration, five students were given different roles: a charge nurse, bedside nurse, support nurse, respiratory therapist and the wife of the patient. Each were given role cards and prepared to begin.
As the teacher read off the situation and status to the students, they began their procedure. They treated the mannequin just like a real human, listening for its heart rate and taking its blood pressure. Dewan, on the side, controlled the mannequin with a remote.
As they tended to the needs of the mannequin’s current status, the now resonant sound of its breathing filled the air. The teacher mentioned that something was going on and the students now had to tend to the wheezing mannequin.
As the wheezing grew louder and the wife began to get nervous, the nurses were forced to multitask, both treating the mannequin and calming the wife.
At this point, the peak of the simulation, a student acting as the respiratory therapist came in, and one of the nurses began preparing to administer an injection. As everything calmed down, the nurses explained to the wife what happened and asked how the “patient” was doing.
The simulation lies in bed with a blood pressure cuff.
— Photo by Jack Husting.
The simulation ended with a deep, slightly inaudible “yub” from the mannequin, which was greeted by relieved laughter by the students.
At the end of the simulation, Dewan played back a recording and did a recap. The students watched and every once in a while paused it to give their feedback, answering to questions like “What’s wrong with this situation? What would you do? What’s missing?” while the teacher also voiced her opinions.
The value in the simulation is that it that helps the students practice their skills and work in panic situations, said Dewan. With the simulation, errors could be made without consequence to a mechanical patient which, while not a real human, looked and acted like one. As Erica Dierkir, who played the charge nurse in the first group, said “It allows us to make mistakes.”
After watching the first group’s performance, a second group was assigned and repeated the simulation, concluding with another recap and discussion afterward.
While the simulation provides a great experience, it should be noted that it is still just a teaching tool; it does not replace the real thing. It complements clinical experiences, but does not duplicate them. Still, as the nurse educator said, it remains a valuble resource, “[engages] students at an emotional level which integrates cognition at a deeper level.”
Emergency