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ANNOUNCING A NEW ARRIVAL AT
UC DAVIS MEDICAL CENTER
Infant simulator makes its first appearance
July 15, 2005
(SACRAMENTO,
Calif.) — As part of its commitment to enhancing
medical education and emergency training throughout the region,
UC Davis
Medical Center is now the proud parent of a highly realistic
infant simulator.
The virtual “baby,” with many physical characteristics
of a 3- to 6-month old, is among the first simulators of its size
in California. It offers computerized simulations for pediatric
illnesses and emergencies, which test the skills of a variety
of patient-care providers, from physicians and medical students
to nurses and paramedics.
The infant simulator is much more than just a fancy, 28-inch-long
doll. It can breathe, blink, bleed and exhibit a variety of other
human characteristics. Powered by a little belly full of computer
parts, this infant features heart sounds, a pulse, reactions to
medical treatment and drugs, and even the ability to throw a wailing
fit, wet a diaper, and sneeze or drool.
“Our new ‘baby’ is the health-care equivalent
of a flight simulator for pilots,” said Judith
Hwang, associate professor of anesthesiology and pain medicine
and one of the physician trainers in the UC
Davis Center for Virtual Care. “This is a tool that
gives our medical staff and other participants the most realistic
training possible in pediatric care and emergencies.”
Using a computer, the simulator can be programmed to generate
a wide variety of responses to pediatric problems and medical
interventions. For example, the baby has an airway that can swell
shut from an allergic reaction, and a head that can bulge from
the increase in intracranial pressure that can occur after a fall.
The new $50,000 simulator joins three other high fidelity mannequins
in the medical center’s innovative virtual care program.
The units, which now range in size from infant to adult, provide
trainees with an impressive variety of trauma scenarios and other
medical situations.
Simulation training is meant to supplement, not replace, traditional
medical training. Studies have shown that life-like simulation
tools can improve patient outcomes by providing the ideal setting
for physicians, nurses and medical teams to practice and perfect
their medical skills in a risk-free environment.
The infant simulator, known by its product name “BabySIM,”
is manufactured by the Florida-based company METI. Acquisition
of the unit was made possible by funding from the Children’s
Miracle Network, UC
Davis School of Medicine and local contributors.
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UC Davis Center for
Virtual Care incorporates a variety of sophisticated simulation
training tools to create a virtual hospital environment for practicing
medical procedures. The center can mimic a single intensive care
unit or replicate the flow of patients through the hospital—from
the scene of an accident and medical transport to treatment in
the emergency room, operating room or intensive care unit. The
facility also provides hands-on training in the use of the medical
center’s surgical robot, which is one of the new, minimally
invasive technologies now being used and developed at the UC Davis
School of Medicine.
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