The value of conducting simulated patient encounters in clinical education extends well beyond the individual student involved in the simulation. Students learn not only from their own simulations but also by observing their classmates’ experiences.

FNU Learning Center

In Frontier Nursing University’s (FNU)  Learning Center, the simulation rooms are designed to look like the actual spaces in which the practitioner-patient interactions occur to create a realistic environment for practicing patient encounters. The only people in the room are the student, the faculty, and the standardized patient. Even though they are not in the room, other students are able to observe these encounters in real-time thanks to a software program called SimIQ.

“SimIQ, a Zoom-integrated video conferencing platform, is a third-party application with cloud-based storage of recorded simulations that helps coordinate and capture information from different simulations,” FNU Director of IT Marc Weitlauf said. “It is used in the simulation rooms and records what happens during simulations.”

Students participating in FNU’s skills intensive Clinical Bound sessions watch each other’s simulations in real-time in nearby classrooms or remote locations via tablets or computers.

“The student’s peers observing the simulated patient interactions learn a lot from each other,” Innovation Coach and Simulation Coordinator Tia Andrighetti, DNP, APRN, CNM, CHSE-A, CNE said. “SimIQ allows us to take what is happening on campus and put it in a virtual environment to facilitate participation and learning with a broader audience.”

The recordings can be used by faculty and students when conducting debriefing sessions after the simulation. They provide the opportunity to analyze the student’s thought process and reflect on what was done well and identify areas for improvement.

“SimIQ has tremendous capabilities beyond what we are using right now during Clinical Bound sessions,” Dr. Andrighetti said. “It also allows us to deliver virtual simulations. In the future, we hope to put cameras and microphones in the room so those streamed simulations can be observed in remote locations across the country. For instance, because they can see what’s happening, we can have faculty members in their homes facilitating the simulations that are taking place on campus. SimIQ makes conducting simulations very convenient and user-friendly.”

“The student’s peers observing the simulated patient interactions learn a lot from each other. SimIQ allows us to take what is happening on campus and put it in a virtual environment to facilitate participation and learning with a broader audience.”
– Innovation Coach and Simulation Coordinator Tia Andrighetti, DNP, APRN, CNM, CHSE-A, CNE

By working collaboratively, Academic Affairs, the FNU IT department, and faculty are unlocking the potential of SimIQ and its impact on the quality and effectiveness of simulations at FNU. Click here to learn more about our innovative ways of teaching and learning at Clinical Bound.

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