September 24, 2021By Lance Baily

Latest Clinical Simulation News From Around the World | September 2021

Helping healthcare simulation educators, administrators and learners to stay up-to-date on industry topics, HealthySimulation.com finds and shares relevant news and information from around the world. This news includes medical simulation observances, organizational grants, clinical simulation presentations, published research and more. Together, these industry updates help paint a picture of where the healthcare simulation industry is at present and where the industry is headed, as the scope of clinical simulation practice expands across the field. Below are some of the world’s latest clinical simulation updates.

Healthcare Simulation Week 2021 Presentation by Dr. Haru Okuda

This video, presented by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, features a presentation by Haru Okuda, MD, FACEP, FSSH during Healthcare Simulation Week 2021. His presentation, titled “Future Opportunities in Healthcare Simulation,” discusses studies about patient safety and quality improvement, especially as they relate to new procedures and technologies, high risk/low frequency events, team training, human factors and more. Additionally, he shares information about healthcare simulation job opportunities and the best ways to pursue them.


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Sim4MH: Psychosis Simulation Day

Hosted by the Simulation for Mental Health Team at Canterbury Christ Church University, “Sim4MH: Psychosis Simulation Day” will take place on Nov. 3, 2021 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (GMT). Learners will gain valuable insight and understanding into the assessment and management of persons living with psychotic disorders. The event will be both face-to-face and virtual. This is a multidisciplinary training event on psychotic disorders that is targeted to the following professionals in Surrey, Sussex and Kent:

  • Paramedics.
  • Frontline police officers.
  • GPs.
  • Acute inpatient psychiatrists.
  • Acute inpatient nurses.
  • Acute inpatient OTs.
  • Acute inpatient pharmacists.

Other Sim4MH events include:

  • Sim4MentalHealth: Depression and Suicidal Ideation – November 17, 2021 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  • Sim4MentalHealth: Personality Disorders Simulation Day – November 24, 2021 from 8:30 to 4:30 p.m.

The Reimagining Nursing Initiative


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By 2024, the Reimagining Nursing Initiative will prove that practice-ready graduates, technology-enabled nursing practice, and direct reimbursement care models create the knowledge, tools, environments, and systems where the nurses of the future can thrive.
Nurses are central to creating a healthcare system that provides high-quality, accessible and equitable care to all Americans. However, our current system underdevelops, underutilizes and underappreciates nurses. The RN Initiative will fund pilots in three priority areas to catalyze transformative change in the nursing field. The three priority areas are:

  • Practice-ready nurse graduates.
  • Technology-enabled nursing practice.
  • Direct-reimbursement nursing models.

iEXCEL Founder Inducted into Modeling & Simulation Hall of Fame

Dr. Pamela J. Boyers, Ph.D., Associate Vice Chancellor for Clinical Simulation, iEXCEL at UNMC was inducted into the Modeling and Simulation Hall of Fame. The National Center for Simulation Modeling & Simulation Hall of Fame began in 2014 in partnership with the Orange County government, including the Office of the Mayor of Orange County and the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC). The Hall of Fame honors and recognizes the accomplishments and contributions of individuals who have pioneered the development of modeling and simulation over the past 100 years.

Upcoming European Simulation Research Network Events

The European Simulation Research Network (SiReN) is holding a virtual meeting on Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021. The organization intends to have direct mentee-mentor discussions and that will include mini-workshop sessions on simulation research topics relevant to the SESAM audience. Everyone interested in healthcare simulation research and education is encouraged to attend, to network, and to learn from and with their peers.

Then, following the SiReN meeting, SESAM’s Winter School will take place on Friday, Oct. 15, 2021. Each year, the SESAM Winter School convenes a group of interested members to explore a topic of shared and common interest. Faculty for Winter School are tasked with working on specific questions relating to the topic, and remain committed to publishing their findings. This year, Winter School 2021 will address the issue of debriefing in healthcare simulation, and specifically how cultural differences can influence and impact the efficacy of that process.

CAMLS Tampa Simulation Moulage Video

CAMLS Tampa released a simulation moulage video showcasing the application of makeup and molds to a human or simulator’s limbs, chest or head, to provide elements of realism to the training or clinical simulation. The video elaborates on how to set the scene for healthcare professionals to practice specialties in teams, for the sake of patient safety and quality in a real environment. The video says, “moulage is simply a gateway to the suspension of disbelief.”

“Getting Better Together: The Two-Team Training Approach in Simulation-Based Education”

Written by Timothy C. Clapper, Ph.D., this article describes a two-team training approach that is very effective for maximizing learning and preparing high-performing teams in several team-based courses. According to Clapper, this strategy exemplifies the power of vicarious learning and learning through imitation. He explains that benefits of the two-team training approach in simulation-based education may include: (1) improved use of training time; (2) increased training volume; (3) recognition, correction, and immediate application of desired behaviors; (4) an improved simulation do-over process; (5) improvement in self-efficacy; and (6) applicable use of research and evidence-based educational practices.

“Remote Virtual Reality Teaching: Closing an Educational Gap During a Global Pandemic”

This study, published in the National Library of Medicine, discusses how remote virtual reality teaching was used as an alternative to traditional classroom learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a prospective pilot study, researchers targeted third-year pediatric clerkship learners at a large academic children’s hospital. The study was conducted from April to December 2020, and involved groups of six to 15 learners. They participated in a 1 1/2-hour video teleconferencing session with a physician facilitator donning a VR headset and screen, sharing interactive VR cases of a hospitalized infant with respiratory distress. Ultimately, the learners completed the survey to assess the immersion and tolerability of the virtual experience, and compared its perceived effectiveness to traditional educational modalities. Comparisons were then analyzed with binomial testing.

“Elon Musk says Tesla will build a humanoid robot prototype by next year”

According to CNBC, Elon Musk announced that Tesla plans to build a humanoid robot called Tesla Bot. The announcement was made as part of AI Day, a series of tech talks hosted by Tesla in California to recruit machine-learning talent. The article shares that Musk said if a humanoid robot can perform repetitive tasks that only humans can do today, it has the chance to transform the world economy by driving down labor costs. Musk added that the robot, code-named “Optimus,” is based on the same chips and sensors that Tesla’s cars use for self-driving features.

“SafePsych: improving patient safety by delivering high-impact simulation training on rare and complex scenarios in psychiatry”

This study, published in the National Library of Medicine, discusses how high-impact simulation training on psychiatry scenarios can improve patient safety. The paper outlines the development and effectiveness of a hybrid virtual-simulation-based workshop designed to improve patient care by improving clinical skills of non-consultant hospital doctors (NCHDs) in detecting and managing rare and complex psychiatric emergencies. To do so, a multidisciplinary team of physicians and nurses in psychiatry, along with experts in simulation-based medical education, developed three clinical vignettes based on near-miss psychiatric cases.

GNSH Receives $10,000 Research Grant

The Global Network for Simulation in Healthcare’s board of directors announced $10,000 in grant funding to support two research studies that will investigate the use and associated outcomes of the GNSH 30-minute team engagement campaign in academic settings. GNSH invites proposals from faculty or researchers, as well as doctoral students, interested in exploring how teamwork, communication and collaboration remain a focus when students in health professions attempt to best understand how to improve patient safety outcomes. The deadline for submitting proposals is Friday, Oct. 1, 2021 at 5 p.m. EST. Recipients of this funding will be announced in late October.

“Team debriefings in Healthcare: Aligning Intention and Impact”



An article published on The BMJ discusses how aligning intention and impact can help learning-oriented debriefings support patient care by helping teams learn and improve. Furthermore, the article shares how COVID-19 has “renewed focus on debriefings to improve performance among healthcare providers: debriefings help teams learn quickly and manage patients more safely.” In addition, the article introduces debriefing and its benefits, highlights the potential consequences when debriefing intentions are blurred, and offers guidance to navigate shifting debriefing objectives.

“Association of Simulation Training With Rates of Medical Malpractice Claims Among Obstetrician-Gynecologists”

This article shares Harvard data published in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Journal, demonstrating that simulation training contributed to a 50% reduction in malpractice claim rates. To complete the analysis, malpractice claim rates were compared before and after simulation for 292 obstetrician-gynecologists that were insured by the same malpractice insurer and attended one or more simulation training sessions from 2002 to 2019.

“How the 9/11 attacks changed emergency response”

According to University of Miami experts, 9/11 ushered in a host of changes in emergency preparation and response, from search and rescue efforts to training for first responders. This article shares the experience of G. Patricia Cantwell, a University of Miami Miller School of Medicine physician who worked after 9/11 tending to the medical needs of the elite South Florida Urban Search and Rescue Team, Florida Task Force 2. The article also explains how medical training simulation for the armed forces have advanced considerably since the attacks.

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