A Simulation Manikin is a technological computerized clinical simulator that provides a means for learners and educators to practice their healthcare skills in real time before attempting to assess or treat a patient firsthand. While standardized or simulated patients have been used in medical training since the mid-twentieth century, advances in technology have enabled a range of advanced ways to represent digital patient simulation models through patient manikins, also called patient mannequins. This HealthySimulation.com article by Founder/CEO Lance Baily will review the types and purposes of healthcare simulation manikins.
Purpose of Healthcare Simulation Manikins
Simulation Manikins in healthcare simulation are used today to advance clinical skills through learning and assessment. This usage has demonstrated that advanced and expanded opportunities within healthcare learning can lead to ever-increasing safety measures to improve the quality of care. These simulated opportunities further create the clinical experiences for the learners and residents to develop and practice their skills beyond what is typically retained through a standard textbook education.
For these reasons, the practice of using clinical Simulation Manikins has become especially important when learners must internalize ways to respond to challenges and high-risk situations in clinical scenarios that pose actual risk to patients throughout their careers. Through practice on Simulation Manikins, learners can become better prepared to manage their immediate reactions to critical situations and maintain a steady hand and expert focus. Simulation Manikins can also reduce the need for supervision or direct oversight later on during many clinical patient encounters.
Advantages of Using A Simulation Manikin
Aside from safety and practice, Healthcare Simulation Manikins offer several clear advantages over traditional training. One benefit is that practice on a Simulated Manikin often leads to more effectiveness in the clinical outpatient environment. Another advantage is the sheer convenience of using these products. Simulation Manikins are designed to be easily transportable, durable, and set up and used anywhere, at any time. This ease of use eliminates the need to prepare training and lesson plans around the availability of a live patient.
Convenience is also demonstrated by the ability of instructors, educators, or trainers to provide real-time feedback directly following a Simulation Manikin experience. By providing feedback immediately after use of a Simulation Manikin, learners are able to quickly identify errors and improve upon these mistakes during future simulations or patient encounters. Ultimately, receiving feedback while the clinical simulation encounter or experience is still โfreshโ helps them better internalize and correct mistakes.
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Next, as the use of Simulation Manikins expands the standardization of care, the Simulation Manikins will simultaneously help ensure that all learners are presented with the tools, standards, and protocols needed to provide quality care locally, nationally, and internationally. In addition to standardizing patient care expectations, Simulation Manikins can help to either compress or expand the time frame during which a simulated experience takes place. This is especially useful when simulating laboratory tests (which can take weeks to come back), and then using the results to continue treating the Simulation Manikin.
Example Features of Simulation Manikins
More unique features that these products can offer are varying blood pressure, pulse, respiratory rate with adventitious sounds, sweating, blinking, and recording CPR effectiveness. They can also simulate some neurological systems and support neurological evaluations. The listening and empathy skills produced by Simulation Manikins are also facilitated by attributes, including attentive non-verbal communication, and by responding to cues, including making effective empathetic statements. While they cannot completely substitute for the realism of the human experience, simulation technology is a step forward in health care education and effective learning methodologies. Newer Simulation Manikins are supported by AI generated LLM for more natural conversations.
Brand-Specific Simulation Manikin Examples
One Simulation Manikin company Laerdal, founded in 1940 and headquartered in Stavanger, Norway, produces a number of Simulation Manikin products. These Simulation Manikins vary based on age, gender, and other factors which help learners to understand the specific needs of different types of patients. Included in their simulation products on the market are the SimMan, SimMom, SimJunior, SimNewB, Premature Anne, and SimBaby Classic.
First, SimMan and SimMan 3G is an advanced medical Simulation Manikin that can display neurological symptoms as well as physiological symptoms. The product is simple to operate and features innovative technology, such as automatic drug recognition. Emergency services and military organizations often utilize SimMan based on the productโs adapted training for rapid assessment of trauma emergencies.
Alternatively, SimMom and MamaNatalie is an advanced full-body birthing Simulation Manikin that comes equipped with accurate anatomy. This product provides learners with the functionality to facilitate multi-professional obstetric training of birth management, with both manual and automatic delivery modes. This technology is important because the simulation helps learners understand how to make quick decisions during childbirth, which can ultimately mean the difference between life and death scenarios.
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SimJunior is an interactive pediatric Simulation Manikin, designed by Laerdal with the American Academy of Pediatrics to ensure that the product meets the education and training needs of healthcare providers. SimJunior delivers a realistic, full-body simulator for pediatric emergencies, and closely represents the body of a 6-year-old boy. The simulation product allows learners to focus on a broad range of pediatric skills in order to gain exposure and practical experience of life-threatening pediatric problems.
Simulating a newborn, SimNewB is a tetherless Simulation Manikin, also co-created with the American Academy of Pediatrics. This product is designed to help improve neonatal resuscitation and to meet the specific learning objectives of neonatal resuscitation protocols. Focusing on the first 10 minutes of life, SimNewB provides realistic training for critical interventions, such as lung recruitment maneuvers and advanced airway management.
Premature Anne and Paul help learners understand how to specifically provide care to a premature infant. Realistically proportioned as a 25-week preterm Simulation Manikin, Premature Anne is designed to facilitate the training of healthcare professionals in the initiation of proper care and resuscitation of preterm infants.
Lastly, SimBaby, Emily, and Emma are advanced infant Simulation Manikins that are ideal for training in all aspects of infant care. With realistic anatomy and clinical functionality, SimBaby is suitable for all types of training – from routine care to critical emergencies. This Simulation Manikin allows learners to assess capillary refill times, test pupillary light reflexes, check bilateral pulses, and more.
As children and infants can have much different physiological responses to trauma as compared to teens and adults, learning how to effectively recognize and respond to respiratory emergencies, shock and cardiopulmonary arrest in these patients is imperative. Together, these Simulation Manikins are helping learners to improve healthcare providersโ abilities to respond more confidently to all clinical, nursing and emergency situations.
Other Manikin Simulator manufacturing companies include Elevate Healthcare, Gaumard Scientific, TacMed Solutions, Operative Experience Inc (OEI), Nasco Healthcare, Medical-X, Simulaids, MedVision, and many other companies offer a variety of products. Visit the Find Vendorsection to explore Simulation Manikin companies.
