Abstract:
Childrenโs Hospital Coloradoโs Sim Wars is an innovative healthcare simulation competition designed to close critical gaps in healthcare education and patient safety culture. Traditional medical training often lacks realistic, high-stakes environments that allow for safe, hands-on learning. Sim Wars addresses this need by delivering immersive, themed scenarios where healthcare professionals can practice critical thinking, teamwork, and technical skills without risking patient harm.
This unique program fosters interprofessional collaboration by engaging diverse healthcare teams in high-pressure, team-based challenges. It also boosts engagement and knowledge retention through the use of creative themes, costumes, music, and multimedia storytelling, transforming routine training into a high-energy edutainment experience.
Sim Wars extends its reach beyond frontline staff. By inviting C-suite executives, Quality Board members, and Foundation donors to participate or observe, the event helps bridge the gap between leadership and clinical teams, fostering a shared understanding of frontline challenges and the value of simulation-based training.
Now a signature event, Sim Wars aligns with institutional priorities such as clinical readiness, family-centered care, and patient safety. Through surveys and outcome tracking, the program provides measurable evidence of its impact, helping justify continued investment in healthcare simulation.
Looking ahead, the vision for Sim Wars is full integration into the hospitalโs education strategy, with accreditation for continuing education, sustained executive support, and increased access to grant funding. The program aspires to become a scalable model for other institutions seeking to elevate medical simulationโs role in improving patient outcomes and team performance. By combining serious learning with playful innovation, Sim Wars exemplifies how simulated healthcare experiences can be both impactful and engaging, advancing not only clinical competence, but also a culture of safety and collaboration across healthcare systems.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe how immersive, themed healthcare simulation experiences like Sim Wars can improve clinical readiness and strengthen interprofessional teamwork in high-pressure scenarios.
- Explain how clinical simulation-based training can be used to identify safety risks, reinforce patient safety principles, and translate theory into practice.
- Explore strategies to integrate creativity, storytelling, and edutainment into healthcare simulation to boost engagement, learning retention, and innovation in training design.
