Category Archives: Medical Simulation

3 Tips to Choose the Right Manikins for Medical Simulation with SEM Trainers

Shyam Gajrani / / Clinical Skills, Medical Simulation, Medicine, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

Simulation brings a lot of new benefits to medical training, like hands-on training, a risk-free environment, and building a number of different skills. And with the medical simulation industry growing, now, there are more kinds of manikins than ever. But with so many options available, how do instructors decide which ones to get for their simulation labs?

How to Choose the Right Manikins for Your Medical Simulation Lab?

Although there are a myriad of simulators available, ultimately, there are 3 main factors to consider that will help you pick the right manikins for Medical Simulation to fulfill your needs- features, cost, and fidelity.

1.It should fulfill the purpose

The first thing to think about is what you will want to use the manikins- which skills you will want to teach using the manikin. For example, if you will be teaching airway management, these are the questions to ask: Will you need both adult and child manikins? Will you need the defibrillation features? Will you need intubation functionality? (..and so on) You might also want to avoid overspending on a manikin with too many extra features that will end up never being used. What is the point of splurging on a manikin that you will only use to 40% of its potential?

Let’s take another example. Suppose you need the students to learn how to place a catheter and get proper fluid return. The KERi Complete will be enough for that. But if you want them to learn more comprehensive diagnostics and patient care, you will either need to go for the Advanced KERi which is equipped with an IV and blood pressure training arm, or complement the KERi Complete with a training arm purchased separately (and then spend the rest of the money on other things for the simulation lab).

2.Consider your budgets

While we would all always like to get our hands on all the state-of-the-art, high-tech and the most high-fidelity manikins for training, in reality, it is not always possible to do so. (But fortunately, at SEM Trainers, we bring you dozens of high-quality, reliable manikins to choose from that will suit your needs). More often than not, we have to work with limited budgets due to limited funding available. That is why instead of splurging all your money on a couple extraordinary manikins with way too many features, it might be a good idea to figure out your requirements and distribute your budget across those. When looking for manikins, ask yourself questions like- Do I need all these features or will the one with fewer features do just as well? How much fidelity do I really need for teaching this particular skill? There may also be upfront or annual fees for add-ons like training, installation, warranties, and service fees to account for, so it’s always best to consider the entire expense before making a choice.

3.Think about the fidelity-cost trade-off

Manikins come in different fidelity levels. High-fidelity manikins look and behave more realistically compared to the low-fidelity ones. Some skills require the scenario to be more realistic and believable- they may be better off using those high-fidelity manikins that offer a higher degree of realism. But high-fidelity manikins are far more expensive than the low-fidelity ones. And while it can’t always be a bad thing to go for the high-fidelity manikin everytime, the truth is that you have a budget to stick to. Ultimately, you have to make a trade-off between the level of fidelity offered and the cost of a manikin. Sometimes, you will have to make do with the level of fidelity that is just good enough for the purpose.

So, if you are an instructor, by keeping in mind the purpose of the manikin (which will decide the features you will need), the budget you have available (which will be best distributed according to your needs), and the level of fidelity you can afford at a convenient cost, you will be able to make the right decisions about the manikins to get for your simulation lab.

Check out the range of manikins offered by SEM Trainers:

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5 Reasons Why Simulation Training is Better | Healthcare

Shyam Gajrani / / Medical Simulation, Medicine, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

The benefits of incorporating simulation training in teaching specific medical skills are manifold. But what are the 5 biggest advantages that make it a viable option that delivers superior results to using the traditional teaching paradigm alone? Let’s find out.

What is Simulation Training?

Simulation training is the process of reproducing realistic environments and situations (often with the use of lifelike simulators/manikins and trainers/medical skills) to create a hands-on learning experience for a learner to practice certain skills. Simulation has been adopted into various fields as a method of learning. For example, pilots first learn to fly a plane on a simulator. Today, it is an essential teaching tool in various industries like aviation, military, and healthcare.

5 Things that Make it Better than Traditional Learning

There are many more benefits to simulation learning other than the fact that it provides the opportunity for hands-on learning. Here are 5 reasons why it is effective (and better):

It provides a safe environment and avoids risk to real patients

While simulation provides an excellent hands-on learning opportunity (theoretical learning isn’t enough for some skills), it does so in a safe environment. This means that students can explore. That they are free to make mistakes and are given the chance to learn from their mistakes rather than being reprimanded for them or the mistakes translating into real-life blunders. This is a rather important attribute of the learning process- the privilege to be able to make mistakes and learn from them. And when students feel free to explore, they inarguably learn better. On top of that, it means that real patients will not be put at risk, as it is when learners practice on real patients- one mistake and a lot could go wrong. Plus, not everyone is comfortable with being attended by a fresher-simulation also helps avoid that.

It builds team skills (among many others)

Usually, in the real-life clinical setting, professionals don’t work alone. A whole team of individuals and a whole lot of work goes into saving lives. Individuals must work together to make the best decisions possible in time to save a patient’s life and deliver optimal treatment quality. Apart from building skills like decision-making skills and the ability to think on your feet, simulation in healthcare training helps build communication and collaboration skills and the ability to work in a team. It also helps with team leading, team building, and crisis resource management skills. People don’t just start working together if placed in the same room; the ability to work efficiently as part of a team is important.

It builds confidence AND improves the quality of patient care delivered

By bridging the gap between theory and practice, simulation training is able to instill a kind of confidence in learners that enables them to go ahead and deliver excellent quality care as they step into the profession. And confidence is also directly linked to competence. A confident professional will be able to smartly deal with any situation- like when interacting with patients or their families, or when there is a tough decision to make. So when learners start to develop confidence, it becomes easier for them to start taking their own decisions and operating by their own autonomy.

It provides real-time feedback

Not only does simulation training and medical skills bridge the gap between theory and practice, through the use of lifelike simulators and trainers with monitors that display real-time feedback, it is made easier to assess the student’s performance. But this isn’t useful for the instructor alone. It means that the student can evaluate his own performance as he works on the patient (manikin or trainer) and evolve to make better decisions during the process. This is a benefit that is not present with the traditional training method. It is one of the things that makes simulation training so effective in healthcare.

It gives learners an idea of what to expect

While a simulated environment is exciting and comfortable, it also prepares learners for what to expect in a real clinical setting. With high-fidelity simulation, there are some distractions as would be in a real hospital. There may be too much noise, a bad smell, or a number of other big and small disturbances that can easily distract someone working on a critical task and result in serious procedural errors. It can also worsen performance and increase the number of attempts and the amount of time taken to do something. Being exposed to such distractions at an early learning stage can accustom the learner to think on their feet and perform better despite said distractions, effectively preventing serious errors.

With such obvious benefits, simulation training greatly outweighs the performance benefits offered by traditional learning alone, and is an indispensable asset in healthcare education.

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Benefits of Virtual Reality Simulators in Medical Simulation Training

Shyam Gajrani / / Clinical Skills, Equipment, Medical Simulation, Medicine, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it is that no matter what life throws at us, we can keep going. While everyone switched to online learning, it was not possible to learn practical medical and surgical skills on a video call. So, we adopted Virtual Reality into simulation training for learning medical and surgical skills so students can still learn practical skills. But Virtual Reality simulators is much more.

What is Virtual Reality and How Does it Apply to Medical Training?

Simulation can be classified into physical, virtual reality, and hybrid. It has already proved to be a widely accepted success in training. It gives students the opportunity to practice procedures wherever they want, whenever they want to. Learners can practice repeatedly in a safe environment, with real-time feedback, and without the risk of causing harm to real patients. But what happens if we introduce virtual reality to simulation training? Let’s first understand what virtual reality is.

Virtual Reality is a computer-generated simulated, 3D environment that you can realistically interact with using special electronic equipment (like a headset with a screen inside or gloves with sensors). There are sensory stimuli present, and how you interact with it partially determines what will happen next. For example, if you wear VR glasses and play a certain game using that, you will feel like you are in the game. In fact, it can be so surreal that many get scared while playing a game with zombies or riding a roller coaster virtually. Through the use of various senses, it creates an immersive experience for you by putting you in scenarios where you are the actor and what you do determines what happens next in the environment.

Using this concept, diverse realistic scenarios can be created for training students in medical and surgical skills. In these scenarios, they enter 360° simulated environments where they experience various sights and sounds that help create a virtual reality.

Today, VR simulators are more realistic and affordable. And research has repeatedly proven the benefits of using VR in simulation training. Without enough hands-on training, students struggle with the development of some cognitive, technical, and socio-emotional skills. This was a problem even before the pandemic- it is hard to provide enough learning opportunities for the students to develop practical skills. VR has helped immensely with this as it allows repeated practice and helps create experiences that might not be so easily accessible(and which may be stressful or rare), and does it without risks or pressure, and without time or space limitations.

Simulating Real Life with Virtual Reality Training

Using virtual reality to train learners on technical skills lets them feel the stress of a real-life scenario without the risks of the real one. And it helps them develop the skills through repeated hands-on practice. Not only are the scenarios realistic, some of them portray some of the not-so-common clinical scenarios where learners are bound to make mistakes. This helps them deal with such situations when they happen in real life.

Simulating a Multiplayer Scenario

Using virtual reality, we can prepare a multiplayer scenario, allowing learners to collaborate and work a case as a team. It lets them interact with each other the way they would do if it was real life. They can identify who gathered which kind of data (like vital signs, physical exam results, case history, and point-of-care testing), and can identify gaps in that data and fill in the blanks. They can delegate responsibilities. Virtual reality training also allows room for interprofessional simulation like by allowing learners from nursing and case management to communicate and collaborate.

Benefits of Virtual Reality Training

There’s a whole myriad of benefits offered by using VR simulation for training:

  • Realistic learning environments that can be reproduced
  • Repeated hands-on training
  • Diverse scenarios (even those that can’t be created otherwise)
  • Gamification of learning
  • Performance feedback
  • Continuous peer interaction

And this leads to:

  • Better student motivation and presence
  • Active learning
  • Improved decision-making abilities
  • Improved critical thinking abilities
  • Better communication skills
  • Helps them identify their strengths and weaknesses
  • Overall, it leads to better learning and dexterity in the technical skills

Also, virtual reality simulators usually come with an in-built objective evaluation system to track and provide feedback about a learner’s performance after each procedure. This gives various parameters like the time, bleeding, bleeding volume, injuries caused, and a pass or fail remark.

It is evident that incorporating virtual reality into simulation training is capable of delivering better results than using traditional training methods. Virtual reality simulators offer a range of benefits from providing learners with a platform where they can engage in repeated hands-on training to creating scenarios that would not be possible otherwise.

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How Simulation-based Learning is Revolutionizing Nursing Education

Simulation in Echocardiography: Can it Fill the Demand?

Shyam Gajrani / / Medical Simulation, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

Echocardiography, which is the use of ultrasound waves to observe the action of the heart, is known to be notoriously difficult to learn and requires extensive training to master. Can simulation in echocardiography be the answer to the growing demand?

Echocardiography needs a lot of skill to master

Today, cardiovascular diseases are one of the most common causes of death around the globe. And as they become more prevalent, the demand for diagnosis also increases. Since echocardiography is an affordable, non-invasive imaging technique that delivers immediate results, it is of importance to see how we can improve the learning process for aspiring learners. But it is difficult to learn.

Apart from being technically competent and practically skilled in what they do, echocardiographers need to understand:

  • The physics behind the modalities
  • Sufficient knowledge of the anatomy
  • The physiology and pathology of the heart

It is hard enough to handle the transducer and connect it to the heart’s anatomy, but they need to understand the basics of ultrasound physics and extract and assess information of the 3D heart from a 2D image.

Challenges to Learning Echocardiography

A 2019 study by Dieden, Carlson, and Gudmundsson discovered the main challenges to learning echocardiography, and the things that could aid the learning. Students found the main challenges to be:

  • The projections: It can be a sizeable task to steer the transducer and obtain a projection, and then make sense of it. And it can be hard for the students to link the projections to where in the heart the ultrasound beam cut.
  • Handling the probe: It can be hard for learners to figure out where to place, angle, and turn the transducer for some projections. They can be clueless about how to position and turn the transducer if they never have any practice.
  • Connecting ultrasound physics and measurements to practical application: Students can find it difficult to link the theory of ultrasound physics to practical performance with the machine.

Things That Help Students Learn Better

The study mentioned above also stated 5 things that would improve learning:

  • Immediate feedback: Real-time feedback and correction from instructors and the screens on the task trainers can improve the learning process; like if the screen can tell them whether they have placed the transducer correctly
  • Playing with the ultrasound machine: it allows learners to use the machine firsthand where no button is off-limits and nothing can go wrong
  • Video lectures
  • The possibility to swiftly alternate between practice and theory: while getting hands-on experience with the ultrasound machine helps learners practice what they just learned, it also helps them understand when and how to apply some concepts and measurements in the clinical setting
  • Learning by their mistakes in a risk-free environment without serious consequences: Students learn to accept that making mistakes is a positive part of the learning process and can make them better at the task

It is interesting to see that 4 out of the 5 things mentioned above can be achieved with the help of manikins and simulators. Using a manikin helps students learn echocardiography in a way that lets them truly understand the fundamentals behind what they are learning, and can even help learners link the anatomy of the heart, placing the probe, and the location of the beam. Echocardiographic simulation can aid traditional training strategies and improve their efficiency.

It can be hard to get real heart patients for learners to operate on. Additionally, if they do learn by operating on real patients, it can make the patients uncomfortable, put them at risk, and breach their privacy. And it can be hard for teachers to explain concepts to learners while managing the needs of a live patient.

It is well-known how simulators allow repeated practice of diverse scenarios ranging from high-risk to rare, and have been adopted into medical and surgical training. Numerous studies have proved that using simulations and mannequins for learning echocardiography is largely beneficial.

By incorporating simulation in echocardiography, learners profit by shorter learning times(by accelerating the learning process), better outcomes, and lower complication rates. They learn to manipulate the transducer better and angulate it to the skin safely, and comprehend the projections easily. Finally, incorporating simulation in echocardiography helps produce competency.

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Top 10 Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) Medical Simulators You’ll Need | SEM Trainers

Top 10 Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) Medical Simulators You’ll Need | SEM Trainers

Shyam Gajrani / / Medical Simulation, Medicine, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) are guidelines for providing immediate medical care for life-threatening injuries on the battlefield. Training for TCCC skills can be provided in 3 phases (care under fire, tactical field care, and tactical evaluation care). Students learn the management of trauma care and blast related injuries, and handle hemorrhage control and airway management. Learners cannot be assigned to real patients for handling traumatic combat injuries, but with the help of hyper-realistic simulators, they get all the practice they might need!

Here are some of our powerful TCCC simulators:

  1. Casualty Care Rescue Randy – powered by Strategic Operations Hyper-Realistic® technology

The three most preventable causes of death are massive bleeding, airway obstruction, and tension pneumothorax. This one is a hyper-realistic full-body manikin that is perfect for training on the procedures that treat these 3 conditions. This manikin holds 3-4 liters of blood and simulates a 2-3 psi blood pressure.

  1. Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulator with Major Vascular Injuries – TCCS 2

This full-body simulator is great for realistically training combat trauma care for major vascular injuries for hemorrhage management and airway control using common wound patterns of combat. Durable in the toughest training scenarios, this simulator is water resistant and great for indoor and outdoor training for the military, government forces, medical rescue, and private security. It is remote-controlled and simple to operate, and comes with an instructor interface tablet with simulation logs and self-diagnosis. Use it for high threat extraction training and realistic TCCC field training scenarios.

  1. Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulator with Traumatic Amputations – TCCS 3

A full-body TCCC simulator for training combat trauma care for traumatic amputation injuries that are above the left elbow and above the left knee along with an amputation at the upper right thigh above the tourniquet line. Highly durable in the toughest training scenarios and water resistant, this simulator is great for indoor and outdoor training. With its lifelike tissue, it is great for training of hemorrhage management and airway control, high threat extraction training, and realistic TCCC field training scenarios.

  1. Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulator with Traumatic Amputations and Gunshot Wounds – TCCS 4

This full-body simulator is great for training for multiple traumatic gunshot wounds (like sucking chest wounds) and amputation injuries above the left elbow and the left knee. Like the others, this is highly durable and water resistant, and great for training of hemorrhage management, airway control, high threat extraction training, and realistic TCCC field training scenarios.

  1. Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulator with Abdominal Evisceration – TCCS 5

A full-body simulator good for training combat trauma care for abdominal wounds with evisceration and a traumatic amputation above the right wrist. Highly durable and water resistant, and great for external hemorrhage and airway control, high threat extraction training, and realistic TCCC field training scenarios.

  1. Tactical Combat Casualty Care Simulator with Gunshot Wounds – TCCS 1

Another full-body TCCC simulator for combat trauma care training of gunshot wound management, hemorrhage management, airway management, and trauma management related to the casualty’s breathing and circulation. Highly durable and water resistant, and great for hemorrhage management, airway control, high threat extraction training, and realistic TCCC field training scenarios.

  1. Tactical Hemorrhage Control Trainer – THCT

This one is a full-sized, remotely-activated simulator for point-of-injury, tactical medicine training for law enforcement and first responders. With realistic and anatomically-accurate soft tissue, durability, and water resistance, this simulator has remotely-activated pulsatile bleeding, multiple injuries like gunshot wounds, stab wounds, and crushing injuries, and an amputation on the left leg above the knee for tourniquet application.

  1. CPR Module for REALITi360 Patient Monitor Simulators

This one is a CPR module with detailed real-time visual feedback on CPR quality. A sensor keeps track of the rate, depth, and release of each compression, and the system evaluates CPR time, correct chest compressions, pressure depth status bar, pressure posture, and pressure CPR rhythm. The system can be worn on the wrist, deployed on a manikin, or even placed inside a manikin.

  1. Hemorrhage Control Arm Trainer P102

A trainer for hemorrhage control on the upper extremity with realistic wound and bleeding simulation. Affordable and great for training of bleeding control and management of traumatic arm injuries. It has a deep laceration/stab wound, a large caliber gunshot wound, and a junctional wound in the shoulder.

  1. Simulated Patient Monitor – REALITi Plus

A patient monitor that is a smart, integrated, and modular simulation ecosystem and lets medical educators run multiple scenarios – from basic to sophisticated. It is mobile, so you can conduct training anywhere- whether it’s an ambulance, a helicopter, a hospital, or a skills lab. 

For meticulous tactical combat casualty care training with the help of simulators, call us at 02632 257259 or drop us a mail at sem@semtrainers.com today!

How Simulation-based Learning is Revolutionizing Nursing Education

Shyam Gajrani / / Clinical Skills, Equipment, Medical Simulation, Medicine, Nursing Education, Simulation-based Learning

Nurses are the heart of healthcare. With that in mind, it is intriguing to discuss the benefits of a simulation-led approach to nursing education.

Through the inclusion of role-playing, devices, trained persons, trainers, environments, and lifelike manikins, promoting learning and eliminating risk for the trained and the novice alike, simulation-led learning creates the perfect opportunity for learners to acquire necessary nursing skills in a safe environment. This also offers the added advantage of building critical decision-making skills by simulating various real-life scenarios. Affected slightly by the level of fidelity, simulation-based learning for nursing education can have a range of benefits.

  1. Hands-on Learning

While it is detailed and complete, theoretical learning can quickly become boring for a group of learners eager to become skilled professionals. Simulation-based learning solves this problem. Not only does it provide learners a way to learn specific skills by actually practicing them, it lets them do so in a safe environment.

  1. Immediate Feedback

A multitude of simulators is designed to provide real-time feedback for the learner’s performance (often through a screen or through lifelike response to stimuli). This feedback can then be used to further improve a learner’s prowess in specific skills. And it all happens in a safe environment, successfully avoiding the risk of causing harm or inconvenience to real patients. Additionally, people learn better when they aren’t afraid of making mistakes.

  1. Learning through Repetitive Practice

Practice makes perfect. Besides, with something as important as nursing, repeated practice builds skill, instills confidence, clarifies the fundamentals, and prepares the learner for stepping into a real clinical setting.

  1. Building of Important Skills

    Simulation allows learners the opportunity to practice caring for patients in ways that they cannot in the real-life hospital setting. Through several studies, it has been found that simulation-based learning for nursing education has a positive impact on knowledge acquisition, psychomotor skills, self-efficacy, satisfaction, confidence, critical thinking skills, and communication skills. It does all that within a safety net.

From mass casualty and wound care to mental health and end-of-life care, nursing skills education benefits from the adoption of a simulation-based approach to learning.

Benefits of a Simulation-Based Approach to Nursing Education

Teaching nursing skills through simulation involves a lot of role-playing and playing out realistic scenarios using actors and manikins. A student can pretend to be a patient, a nurse, a healthcare assistant, a manager, a student, a doctor, or even an angry relative. Imagine that as a student, you are pretending to be a nurse tending to three patients and receiving a call from the relatives of one of them. Think about what skills you would take home from that experience. No matter what scenario plays out, the result is improved patient care skills for everyone involved in the scenario. Simulation-based training is effective at bringing on the following changes in learners:

  • The ability to think on their feet
  • Refined communication and management skills
  • Acute decision-making skills
  • Confidence in their nursing abilities
  • The ability to work under pressure
  • Improved knowledge of nursing skills
  • Visibly improved technical skills
  • Stronger leadership skills
  • Developed self-confidence and attitude/aptitude for nursing
  • Students are exposed to rare clinical situations
  • Students are able to practice clinical reasoning skills

Other Miscellaneous Benefits

Other than the obvious benefits to the learning process and the learner, there are some other benefits to the nursing education system as a whole:

  • Enhanced patient safety and quality
  • Learners can manage patients without posing risk to actual humans
  • Controlled and safe learning environment
  • Structured feedback
  • Faster time to competence
  • Fills the gap in faculty/clinical site resources

Additionally, simulation-based nursing-skills training avoids inefficiency due to the following during training:

  • Feeling awkward for getting in the way of nurses’ work
  • Getting flustered by an unexpected situation or care instruction
  • Experiencing difficulty in adapting to training because many parts were not covered in school

It can safely be said that a simulation-based approach to nursing skills training lays the foundation for a student-centred learning paradigm. So owing to the array of benefits that it brings with itself, simulation-led training has secured its place in nursing skills training as an indispensable asset. And with further advancements in the technology, it may open up newer horizons of learning in nursing and other aspects of healthcare.

Simulators from SEM Trainers

If you’re looking to purchase medical simulators for the purpose of nursing skills training, your search ends here, because SEM Trainers is the #1 provider of premium-quality simulation products sourced from Germany, USA, Japan, and Europe.

The Purpose of Intubation & How Manikins Minimize Potential Risks

Shyam Gajrani / / Equipment, Medical Simulation

We live in a world where immediate, urgent care is at our fingertips. It is now easier to save lives. This couldn’t have been done without the use of medical manikins in training medical aspirants. The benefits of simulation training are manifold. Today, we will discuss the purpose of intubation and the role of medical manikins in reducing the risks associated with it.

What is Endotracheal Intubation?

If you have been the unfortunate victim of a brutal accident and cannot breathe, one of the first things the paramedic or healthcare professional will do is intubation. The ultimate purpose of this procedure is to save lives when people can’t breathe. In this procedure, the paramedic will guide an endotracheal tube (ETT) into your mouth/nose, voicebox, and then the trachea(the windpipe) after locating your vocal cords through a laryngoscope, which is a small instrument with a light. Since you won’t be able to breathe naturally, this tube will hold the airway open so that air can get to your lungs. Essentially, intubation is used to help a person breathe when he can’t breathe on his own regardless of whether it’s the result of an injury. It is usually performed in the hospital, during an emergency, or before surgery.

Risks Associated with Intubation (and the role of manikins)

Keeping in mind that it is an emergency procedure, and that an entire tube is guided through to the trachea, there are some risks involved:

  • The person’s teeth may be injured due to the forces applied to the maxillary incisors during the process
  • There may be an injury to the throat or the trachea
  • Too much fluid may build up in organs or tissues
  • There may be bleeding
  • Occasionally, it can cause a lung complication or injury
  • Acids and other contents from the stomach may end up in the lungs (this is called aspiration). The person may inhale vomit, blood, or other fluids
  • A person may develop an infection, like a sinus infection
  • Endobronchial intubation: The tube may further go down one of the two bronchi
  • Esophageal intubation: The tube may go down your esophagus (the food pipe) instead of the trachea
  • Finally, the intubation might not even work

As a beginner proceeds to perform this on a manikin, he is more relaxed and focussed, and less afraid of the consequences of a mistake. These days, we have manikins with incredibly lifelike anatomical landmarks that respond to the process and also give real-time feedback for incorrect intubation. For this procedure, at least, learners cannot be given the opportunity to practice by operating on real patients, given the number and intensity of risks involved.

If you want to purchase professional-quality intubation manikins for your training programs, look no further. At SEM Trainers, we deliver state-of-the-art manikins to help you with your training needs:

Intubation Head for CPR

This head packed with lifelike anatomical details helps practice a full range of airway management techniques. It helps in double nasotracheal intubation, bag and mask ventilation techniques, supraglottic devices, direct laryngoscopy, endotracheal tube insertion, awake fiber optic examination, and combi tube insertion.

Nasogastric Intubation Model

This one comes with a median section through the nose, mouth, pharynx, trachea, esophagus, and stomach, giving your learners a better idea of what’s happening. It also includes a tracheostoma to show endotracheal aspiration.

Child Intubation Head

Manikin of a 3-year-old for training nasal and oral intubation skills. This one comes with inflatable lungs and stomach, and anatomical landmarks.

Endotracheal Intubation Simulator

Endotracheal intubation is an extremely skilled procedure and carries the most risks. That is why you should first train your learners on this simulator before going on to real patients. It helps practice oral and nasal tracheal intubation, use of the laryngoscope, securing airways, handling supraglottic airway devices, and determining ventilation and accidental oesophageal intubation among others.

Infant Intubation Head

An infant manikin for the practice of nasal and oral intubation skills on an infant. Like the child intubation head, this comes with inflatable lungs and stomach, and anatomical landmarks.

Advanced Infant Intubation Head with Board

With its new skin technology, exceptional durability, and lifelike appearance (and a lightweight stand), this makes for an excellent manikin for pediatric airway training. What’s advanced about this one, you ask? Well, with the new material, the airway won’t tear up, and you won’t have to take it for costly repairs every time a student makes a mistake. And because this new skin is translucent, you will be able to see the airway and neck illuminate.

Medical Manikins: 7 Things to Keep in Mind While Buying Them

SEM TRAINERS / / Medical Simulation

The introduction of simulation into how we approach medical training has remarkably revolutionized the field, to say the least. Not only are medical manikins extremely realistic and lifelike with realistic anatomy, they help provide hands-on experience by minimizing the risk of operating on real patients while also building critical communication and decision making skills.

Once you have decided to purchase medical manikins for your training program, there are a few things to consider so that you end up getting nothing but the best.

Price and Budget of Medical Manikins

While it would undoubtedly be perfect if everyone could always just get the state-of-the-art high-fidelity ones, it is not always possible because of budgeting constraints. At SEM Trainers, the most ardent medical manikins supplier in India, we give you dozens of options to choose from, no matter what your budget is.

One question you need to ask yourself is whether it’s the best idea to buy one rather costly medical manikin or to split that budget across the lab. You also want to avoid paying for advanced features that you don’t need, and that will probably end up never being used.

And then there is the cost of training, installation, warranty, and service fees. When it comes to price, you will have to make the decision keeping in mind the features that you need so that the manikin can fulfill the purpose of your training without burning holes in your pocket.

Functionality of Medical Manikins

Does the manikin come with the basic features you need for the training? Does it come with any extra features? What are the benefits of one over the other? What skills will the learner be able to take home? While manikins may have been huge in the past, with time, they have gotten smaller and lighter. You’re good to go as long as you know what you need-your specific requirements. And as an instructor, you know best what you need the manikin to be able to do.

And it just doesn’t make sense to purchase incredibly advanced manikins with features you will never need- a simulator that you will only use to around half its potential. Sometimes, you can just get the basic manikin and buy that extra part/feature separately. Like if you need your students to learn to place a catheter and get proper fluid return, you can either get the manikin that provides all that, or just the basic model with the arm purchased separately. This also frees up money to be spent on other necessities.

Delivery Time

Once you have made your decision, you need to make sure to order in time. High-quality medical manikins from top foreign brands can take some time to reach you. At SEM Trainers, we are devoted to getting these to you as soon as possible, but it’s always a good idea to order your manikins well in advance.

Long-Term Equipment Maintenance Costs

Medical manikins are a commitment. Just purchasing the right manikins won’t be all, you’ll need to regularly maintain them to avoid having to buy new ones because your old ones keep getting dysfunctional. You will want to look for manikins that are easy to maintain, wash, and clean.

Size and Weight

Make this decision according to your needs. If you will be traveling with the manikin a lot, it won’t make sense to lug around a heavy manikin. So, you will need one that is lightweight. But if it will stay in one place, you may want to trade weight for durability.

Feedback Mechanism

Depending on what skills you intend to teach with the help of the manikin, it should be a manikin with a feedback mechanism that lets you easily read feedback and assess performance.

Material of Medical Manikins

Some people may be allergic to latex. If you are worried about that, you may be better off investing in latex-free medical manikins.

We hope you will keep these factors in mind when making your next purchase. Although some factors may depend on your specific needs, in the end, the manikin you pick out should be trustworthy and reliable. And at SEM Trainers, the leading medical manikins supplier in India, we make sure you go home with nothing but the best.

Find out the top 7 CPR Manikins best suitable for Emergency CPR training.

Trauma Manikins – Surgical Procedures Involved & Application

SEM TRAINERS / / Medical Simulation

Traumatic injuries have a great chance of becoming the third-largest cause of death around the world. Trauma is no different than any other illnesses and injuries that arise anywhere near the top ten list. The people working in emergency care make constant efforts to improve the care provided to traumatic patients. For that many other metrics have also been added for them as an evolution of care.

In a dynamic condition, patients can be treated with the help of healthcare simulation. Also, medical simulation is used to deliver, record and assess the applications of life-saving interventions and treatments in a high frequency and low consequence environment. This has resulted in the development of a class of manikins that are called ‘Trauma Manikins’.

Introduction To Trauma Manikins

Trauma Manikin is a surgical simulation manikin used for medical professionals, to teach them surgical skills, including the American College of Surgeons’ Advanced Trauma Of Life Support (ATLS) program. At the time of combat situations, advanced surgical skills training is provided through Trauma Manikins. These surgical trainers are preferably used at the place of a simulation trainer by both instructor and medical students for teaching emergency trauma surgical skills.

As for any manikin-based clinical simulation, there are many manufacturers that design ‘Trauma Manikins’ based on the traumatic situation they are going to be used for the demonstration. The educators and administrators have a tendency to pick a manikin that has the label ‘Trauma Care’ as according to them, that particular kind must be the best to meet their individual needs. Not only this, but there are some manikins which are specially endorsed by different organisations to be the only manikin that is suitable comprehensively for a specific course. As it becomes important for the instructors to have the specific manikins for the specific courses and not the ones that do not meet their needs.

Surgical Procedures

Basically, a ‘Trauma Manikin’ can be used to simulate the needed experience or skill set of a particular profession which is related to the care that a medical professional is considered to deliver in a scenario that involves traumatic injury. These manikins may include any or all of the following simulation healthcare capabilities and are used to train on the following surgical procedures:

  • Cricothyrotomy
  • Percutaneous tracheostomy
  • Needle decompression
  • Chest tube insertion
  • Pericardiocentesis
  • Diagnostic peritoneal lavage
  • Intravenous cutdown
  • Humans like weight and issues related to musculoskeletal stabilization and transfer
  • Articulable head and neck to allow for cervical spine manipulation and immobilization
  • Haemorrhage control including exhibiting haemorrhage, ability to cease blood flow with well-aimed direct pressure, tourniquet, or surgical intervention
  • Airway intervention including intubation or other advanced airway devices, needle and/or surgical cricothyrotomy, tracheostomy, insertion of NPA and OPA, and other less common airway interventions
  • Needle decompression of the chest
  • Chest tube maintenance, and monitoring
  • Surgical interventions for traumatic injuries
  • Various ultrasound examinations
  • Simulated open and closed musculoskeletal injuries
  • Amputations and various levels of simulated bleeding
  • Additional simulation of associated signs and symptoms related to patient presentation after a traumatic injury
  • Often these manikins are also “designed or improved to be hard-wearing or shock-resistant” in order to be used in environments that mirror more common points of injury sites.

There are various kinds of manufacturers who have their own way of providing varying degrees of simulated skills through trauma manikins and combinations of the above and other different capabilities to satisfy the demands at different levels of providers.

Some specific examples that do not include trainers but only consist of manikins that are specifically built for traumatic situations, being different from other manikins that are able to simulate some trauma skills in addition to their normal capabilities:

Nasco Healthcare

Trucorp company

3B Scientific

OEI tactical casualty simulators

Simulaids

Application in Trauma Simulation

There is a trend both in peer-reviewed literature and in the industry investment in trauma simulation – The capability to simulate the trauma scenarios that are more and more complex and realistic with the use of high fidelity, high technology, manikin based simulation.

This has given rise to the increased usage and coordination of technical and non-technical skills in the delivery of simulated patient care. The function and coordination of this care eventually lead to more research being done on how to accomplish the topmost level of quality and efficiency in the delivery of trauma care.

The Role of Fidelity in Simulation Training

Shyam Gajrani / / Medical Simulation

Fidelity comes from the Latin word fidēlis, meaning faithful or loyal. Generally speaking, fidelity is the degree of exactness with which something is copied or reproduced.

What is Fidelity in Simulation Training?

We have always emphasized on the role and benefits of using simulation for training aspiring doctors and nurses. Simulators are devices that imitate the real-life medical environment, but in a safe way, so learners can practice with real-time feedback but without the risks involved.

In simulation, fidelity is a term that denotes the degree to which the simulator replicates reality. Simply speaking, it is how well the simulator is able to imitate a real-life medical environment, or how close it gets to a real scenario. So, a simulator that depicts a real scenario really well would be termed “high-fidelity”, and one that does not so much, “low-fidelity”. A low-fidelity simulation is less realistic than a high-fidelity one.

Levels of Fidelity in Simulation

In 1990, Miller sketched out a pyramid depicting how a person’s actions are built upon his knowledge, competence, and performance. An increased level of fidelity in simulation may correspond to a transformation from knowledge to competence, performance, and ultimately, action. 

Miller's Pyramid

We observe the following levels of fidelity in simulation:

  • Low-Fidelity Simulation: This level of simulation helps build knowledge. This may not be very realistic, but it takes away the stress of the situation and lets the learner focus on learning the skill. Take static models and 2D displays for example.
  • Mid-Fidelity Simulation: This one is a bit more realistic and helps build competence in the learner. Take, for example, full-body manikins that imitate real heart and breathing sounds. Learners can use these to train on procedures like IV insertions, injections, and NG tube insertions.
  • High-Fidelity Simulation: These are the most realistic simulations- the closest to real life. Take, for example, full-body computerized manikins that can talk and run pre-programmed scenarios.

Types of Fidelity in Simulation

Fidelity can be physical, psychological, and conceptual. Physical fidelity can be perceived by the senses. If your manikin’s skin feels like real skin, and body parts react and bleed like they would on a real patient, it increases the degree of physical fidelity. Task-trainers, or lifelike manikin simulators representing a part of the body can help train on specific skills and focus on functional fidelity. And when they allow haptic feedback, that increases the degree of physical fidelity. Moulage, or applying makeup to mock injury, can engage learners’ sensory perceptions.

If you introduce some realistic background noises to the simulated setting, you will increase the physical fidelity, consequently also increasing the psychological fidelity as it elicits an emotional response from the learner and raises stress levels. If all aspects of your simulated scenario accurately represent how they would be in a real scenario, such that it makes sense to the learner, you have high conceptual fidelity.

Beyond the three major classifications, fidelity may also be classified as functional fidelity, which is the dynamic interaction between the learner and the task at hand, and sociological fidelity, which is how the interactions between the participants affect the level of realism.

So What Degree of Fidelity Do We Really Need?

Ideally, we want all simulators to be high-fidelity, but limited procurement budgets make that hard to achieve. So, often, we must settle for a trade-off between the degree of fidelity and the cost of procurement, or “mid-fidelity”. In high-stress environments, the costs may be monetary as well as loss of human life. We will discuss various scenarios ahead in the discourse.

Scenarios to Imagine

Imagine this. A well-established gaming company comes up with an exciting idea for a new game, and the developers must build it soon. A high-fidelity videogame would be meticulous with the graphics, the gameplay, and the story. A game that would manage to ignore even one of these aspects could fail to create an immersive, realistic gaming experience. This would result in a failure of the game to launch successfully, and possibly cost the company millions of dollars, along with ruining its reputation. Here, the cost would be monetary.

In the application of aircraft or driving simulation, higher fidelity would be required. Poor training and poor decisions made under high-stress, emergency situations in real-life could result in fatal outcomes. In emergency situations on an actual plane, you would expect your pilots to make the right decisions at the right time regardless of the immense stress of an urgent, unfamiliar situation. This cannot be made possible without training in high-fidelity simulation.

If we take the military for example, soldiers may be trained for combat in a high-fidelity simulation. Such training must prepare the soldier for making resource-aware decisions and train them in dealing with a variety of unexpected situations. Training for this in low-fidelity simulations may not prepare a soldier for combat, but create the illusion of competence.

Ultimately, the degree of fidelity exercised in simulation can impact the levels of confidence and anxiety. If learners practice in low-fidelity environments, they might incorrectly assume confidence. Being met with unexpected developments in-field can render a state of disillusionment and disbelief in the training, revealing that they were, in fact, unprepared, and further leading to possibly catastrophic consequences.

However, it is also true that learners and educators are biased towards HFS (High-Fidelity Simulation), and that higher levels of fidelity may increase the cognitive load on the learner to the point of overwhelming him, effectively decreasing learning. Maybe beginners would be better off starting with low-fidelity simulation and then move up as they gain experience. Low-fidelity simulation may also be preferred when training on skills that call for repeated practice.

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