Simulation Centers and Simulation-Based Education during the Time of COVID 19: A Multi-Center Best Practice Position Paper by the World Academic Council of Emergency Medicine

Fatimah Lateef; Madhavi Suppiah; Shruti Chandra; Too Xin Yi; Willy Darmawan; Brad Peckler; Veronica Tucci; Alfredo Tirado; Lorraine Mendez; Lisa Moreno; Sagar Galwankar

doi:10.4103/JETS.JETS_185_20

Simulation Centers and Simulation-Based Education during the Time of COVID 19: A Multi-Center Best Practice Position Paper by the World Academic Council of Emergency Medicine

J Emerg Trauma Shock. 2021 Jan-Mar;14(1):3-13. doi: 10.4103/JETS.JETS_185_20. Epub 2021 Mar 23.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Senior Consultant, Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Professor, Duke NUS Graduate Medical School, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National, University of Singapore and Lee Kong Chian Medical School, Nanyang Technological University, Director, SingHealth Duke NUS Institute of Medical Simulation (SIMS), Philadelphia, USA.
² Assistant Director, SingHealth Duke NUS Institute of Medical Simulation (SIMS), Philadelphia, USA.
³ Assistant Professor, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Department of Emergency Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, USA.
⁴ Assistant Manager, SingHealth Duke NUS Institute of Medical Simulation (SIMS), Wellington, New Zealand.
⁵ Senior Executive, SingHealth Duke NUS Institute of Medical Simulation (SIMS), Wellington, New Zealand.
⁶ Emergency Medicine Specialist and Director of The Wellington Regional Simulation and Skills Center, Capital and Coast District Health Board, Wellington, New Zealand.
⁷ Research and Scholarly Activity Director, Oak Hill Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Brooksville, FL USA, Professor of Research and Emergency Medicine, Hattiesburg, MS USA.
⁸ Program Director, Oak Hill Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Brooksville, FL USA.
⁹ Simulation Director, Oak Hill Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Brooksville, FL USA.
¹⁰ President of AAEM, Florida State University Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Associate Professor Florida State University, Sarasota, FL USA.
¹¹ Research Director, Florida State University Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Associate Professor Florida State University, Sarasota, FL USA.

Abstract

COVID 19 struck us all like a bolt of lightning and for the past 10 months, it has tested our resilience, agility, creativity, and adaptability in all aspects of our lives and work. Simulation centers and simulation-based educational programs have not been spared. Rather than wait for the pandemic to be over before commencing operations and training, we have been actively looking at programs, reviewing alternative methods such as e-learning, use of virtual learning platforms, decentralization of training using in situ simulation (ISS) modeling, partnerships with relevant clinical departments, cross-training of staff to attain useful secondary skills, and many other alternatives and substitutes. It has been an eye-opening journey as we maximize our staff's talent and potential in new adoptions and stretching our goals beyond what we deemed was possible. This paper shares perspectives from simulation centers; The SingHealth Duke NUS Institute of Medical Simulation which is integrated with an Academic Medical Center in Singapore, The Robert and Dorothy Rector Clinical Skills and Simulation Center, which is integrated with Thomas Jefferson University, Oakhill Emergency Department, Florida State University Emergency Medicine Program, Florida, USA and The Wellington Regional Simulation and skills center. It describes the experiences from the time when COVID 19 first struck countries around the world to the current state whereby the simulation centers have stWWarting functioning in their "new norm." These centers were representative examples of those in countries which had extremely heavy (USA), moderate (Singapore) as well as light (New Zealand) load of COVID 19 cases in the nation. Whichever categories these centers were in, they all faced disruption and had to make the necessary adjustments, aligning with national policies and advisories. As there is no existing tried and tested model for the running of a simulation center during an infectious disease pandemic, this can serve as a landmark reference paper, as we continue to fine-tune and prepare for the next new, emerging infectious disease or crisis.

Keywords: COVID 19; computer-based simulation; simulation centers; simulation-based learning; social distancing; “TraceTogether”.