WHAT:           UA Medical Simulation Laboratory Grand Opening

 

WHEN:           Ribbon Cutting:         THURSDAY, JUNE 9, 10 A.M. TO NOON

                       

Open House:              FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 10 A.M. TO 2 P.M.

 

WHERE:         The University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, Room 4303

 

Contact:  Jo Marie Gellerman, (520) 626-7219                                                          June 7, 2005

 

A patient is rushed into the emergency room suffering from multiple injuries. Doctors must work quickly, making split-second decisions. Before facing this scenario in real life, doctors-in-training at The University of Arizona College of Medicine are practicing life-saving skills in a high-tech Medical Simulation Laboratory.

 

One of only a handful of medical simulation centers in the United States, the new training lab is part of the Arizona Simulation Technology and Education Center (ASTEC). Being launched Thursday, June 9, with grants and equipment donations from Karl Storz Endoscopy, Berchtold, ExhibitOne and Marconi, the lab provides medical students, residents, practicing physicians, and nurses hands-on training using simulation and virtual reality in a setting where there is no risk to real patients. The lab, located in renovated space on the fourth floor of The University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, features a state-of-the-art simulated operating room, virtual reality surgical trainers and telecommunication capabilities to broadcast lectures and demonstrations to other medical schools and hospitals.

 

The lab also features a life-like, computer-controlled mannequin whose pupils dilate, chest expands and contracts, and that can be programmed to simulate a wide range of symptoms and respond accordingly to treatment. Using medical emergency scenarios, students learn to work as a team as they decide what drugs to administer and whether they need to run a tube down the throat to help the “patient” breathe.

 

Just as airline pilots train in flight simulators before flying a plane packed with passengers, medical simulators allow doctors to practice delicate procedures before they are used on real people, explains Allan J. Hamilton, MD, UA professor of surgery and ASTEC executive director. Instead of making their first diagnoses -- and potential first mistakes -- on real patients, students learn their lessons on mannequins and virtual-reality training tools.

 

“Research studies have shown that skills learned in the virtual-reality environment lead to more efficient and effective learning and have the potential to reduce errors, ultimately saving thousands of lives every year,” Dr. Hamilton says.

 

The mission of the Medical Simulation Laboratory is to develop, validate and apply simulation-based tools and devices for use in medical and surgical training. The lab also is a place where medical equipment and simulation companies can collaborate with the UA to develop and test new prototypes.

 

“The lab gives us the opportunity to become a leader in the greater integration of technology into medical education and allow us to take better care of our patients,” Dr. Hamilton says.

 

 

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Susan Guthrie
Senior Public Affairs Coordinator
University of Arizona, College of Medicine
Phoenix Campus
4001 N. Third Street, Suite 401
Phoenix, Arizona  85012
602-631-6555 (office) 480-241-7738 (cell)
sguthrie@email.arizona.edu