Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Future of healthcare education technology developed by Leeds Beckett and CAE Healthcare
Ann Sunderland, Director of Clinical Skills and Simulation in the School of Health at Leeds Beckett, has been selected to work with Canadian Aviation Electronics (CAE) Healthcare to develop a tool which calculates the impact of a student’s simulated encounter with a patient. The project forms part of CAE Healthcare’s LearningSpace Academic Research Program.
Ann explained: “Simulation has become firmly embedded in healthcare education over the last few decades as there is overwhelming evidence to support its effectiveness. Simulation-based education offers targeted learning experiences where knowledge, skills and attitudes can be learned and refined within a safe and supportive environment.
“The ability to replicate specific clinical scenarios with immersive and interactive participation from learners (both individuals and teams), is a powerful tool with which to enhance technical and non-technical skills, as well as being a useful method of assessment.”
The project, Patient Impact Scoring, will build on Ann’s PhD research, which centres around the impact of simulation-based education on patient outcomes. Using CAE Healthcare’s LearningSpace Intuity technology within the University’s Clinical Skills Suite, Ann will compare the effects on patients’ outcomes in relation to both simulation-based and scheduled learning activities in postgraduate students. Ann will work with CAE Healthcare programming experts in the US to develop a tool for calculating a score that reflects the overall impact of the student's encounter with a patient (either a lifelike mannequin or simulated patient) during a simulated scenario.
Ann added: “I feel honoured to have been selected for the international CAE Learning Space Academic Research Program. It's great that others believe your idea has real merit and hopefully can be utilised to enhance research into simulation-based education in the future. I'm really looking forward to working with CAE on this exciting project in the months to come!”
Leeds Beckett University’s Clinical Skills Suite, based at the University’s city centre Portland Building, consists of specialist equipment in purpose-built rooms, including: a simulation suite, seven skills and practice rooms, a community apartment, and a range of part task trainers for teaching clinical procedures and care. CAE Healthcare’s LearningSpace is used throughout the Clinical Skills Suite, with a total of 13 cameras, including four mobile cameras, allowing for assessment within the Suite and in clinical areas. LearningSpace is a multi-faceted system providing total centre and activity management as well as providing an online learning platform. It is web-based so can be accessed anywhere, which is particularly useful for part-time students.
CAE Healthcare is a global medical simulation company with a mission to improve healthcare education and patient safety. The Academic Research Program aims to promote and encourage research currently being conducted by LearningSpace users all over the world.