Simulation
Simulation is a proven and powerful tool for learning in healthcare
As a training intervention, it can support and enhance the development of basic or more advanced technical skills and capabilities at all levels of experience, in both individual and team-based practice.
Effective use of simulation can enhance professional development, improve the quality of patient care, and inform the design of healthcare systems to support patient safety and staff wellbeing.
Our Education Sub-Committee provides the governance for this work.
Simulation can offer a unique method to identify and rehearse the development of critical non-technical skills for intensive care doctors as well as key team working skills and behaviours that underpin effective and safe clinical practice.
Unique opportunities
Simulation provides unique opportunities to rehearse individual and team performance as preparation for dealing with rare or potentially life threatening events. Simulation also has an important role in the understanding and subsequent application of Human Factors (i.e. systems science) in the workplace to optimise professional practice, system performance and staff well-being within an increasingly complex and resource constrained clinical environment. This can help improve the quality and safety of patient care through studying interactions between technical and non-technical skills and wider work system factors, such as the design of medical devices, information technology, working environments, and the policies and procedures that underpin everyday practice.
A basic collection of scenarios and videos are provided in these pages. We have collected numerous debriefing templates for you to download and use, as well as a guide for getting started, resources to help to develop your own sim programme, and a handy guide to writing scenarios.
Other learning resources
FICMLearning Simulation podcasts
Listen to our two part series on Simulation with sessions on improving patient outcomes and the importance of debriefing well, using simulation as an effective educational tool, in-situ simulation, setting up a high fidelity course and more.
RCoA Podcast - Simulation: Working with the new ASPiH standards
In this Episode of Anaesthesia on Air, Dr Steffan Glaze, Dinwoodie Simulation Fellow at the Royal College of Anaesthetists, hosts a discussion about the new Standards for Simulation-based Practice from the Association of Simulated Practice in Healthcare (ASPiH) with two of the authors, Professor Cristina Diaz-Navarro and Professor Makani Purva, alongside Professor Mary Mushambi, University Lead for Simulation at the University of Leicester.
They share the creation process and aims of the new standards, changes from the previous iteration and potential applications within both practice and teaching.
Blog: In-Situ-Simulation, a 'how to' guide
A FICMLearning blog by Dr Andrew Jacques to help you set up an in-situ simulation (ISS) program in the intensive care unit.
Useful links
- Sydney Clinical Skills and Simulation Centre
Sub-categorised simulation scenarios, including session plan resources and candidate handouts - Harvard Centre for Medical Simulation
Multiple FOAMed materials about simulation in healthcare including webinars and podcasts on all aspects of simulation - Royal North Shore Sim Training
Information on setting up an in-situ programme with ground rules and a debrief guide - ICU-IS-SIM The Alfred
Extensive collection of free to use ICM simulation scenarios, Alfred debrief tool, and proposed template to write your own scenarios
Do you have simulation resources?
If so and you would like them featured on the FICM website, please get in touch.