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Education

The THSSC collaborates with faculty, representatives from the community, and clinical experts to ensure that the technology based and clinical simulation learning programs are designed to prepare the future healthcare workforce with the skills required to meet the ever evolving needs of the 21st century.

The THSSC is designed as a safe, realistic healthcare delivery environment where students and clinicians practice critical thinking, clinical judgment and technical skills. Simulation learning is spiraled through the curricula and scenarios progress from basic to complex according to the level of the learner. Simulation sessions are an integral part of the curriculum for undergraduate and graduate nursing programs– bridging the gap between academe and clinical practice. Modalities include mid and high fidelity manikins. Simulated patients (actors) are utilized for psychiatric and highly emotional simulated sessions to maintain realism and learner engagement. Patient safety, family/patient centered care, teamwork, communication, and critical thinking are themes woven into each simulation session.

Interprofessional Education (IPE)

In 2014, the Deans and Directors of the University of Hawaii Council of Health Sciences (CHS) established the Hawaii Interprofessional Education (HIPE) workgroup. The members include the UH Manoa Nancy Atmospera-Walch School of Nursing, John A. Burns School of Medicine, Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work with the Office of Public Health Studies, UH Cancer Center, and the UH Hilo Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy.

The HIPE workgroup has integrated IPE into the curriculum of each school. A IPE foundation curriculum as well as simulation and clinical practica were developed to ensure that each graduate from the CHS programs meets the interprofessional core competencies, recommended by the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC). THSSC is committed to creation of IPE sessions that provide a safe venue to practice teamwork and collaboration skills.

Highlights of the IPE sessions include:

  • HIPSTER:  Hawaii Interprofessional Simulation Training for Emergency Response
    • 8-hour simulation focused on improving teamwork and communication skills among members of the healthcare team. Cases focus on care of patients experiencing Medical Emergencies.
  • HIPTCS: Hawaii Interprofessional Team Collaboration Simulation
    • 4-hour simulation aimed at improving healthcare team collaboration skills. The case simulates a team discharge planning meeting and focuses on the unique needs of an elderly woman who is hospitalized after a fall related to multiple factors including a polypharmacy issue.
  • HITEC ICU: Hawaii Interprofessional Training for End of Life Communication – ICU
    • 4-hour simulation focused on the practice of utilizing interprofessional team collaboration skills for teams to deliver “bad news” and assist families with end of life decisions in an adult intensive care setting.
  • PIPP: Pediatric Interprofessional Program
    • 4-hour simulation focused on the practice of utilizing interprofessional team collaboration skills for teams to deliver “bad news” and assist families with end of life decisions in a pediatric intensive care setting.
  • Disaster and Its Aftermath
    • 4-hour table-top simulation session focused on an interprofessional teams of students collaborating to respond to a disaster (a Tsunami wave) and the issues that occur in the ensuing days after the initial event (“The Aftermath”). Immediately after the Tsunami, teams work collaboratively to triage victims, provide first aid and organize the transport of victims. The session then takes place weeks after the disaster and public health issues that result from lack of resources.
  • TeliPORT: Telepresence InterProfessional RoboT simulation
    • 4-hour interprofessional simulation focuses on the concepts of telehealth. During the sessions, telepresence robots are utilized to conduct pharmacy consultation during complex simulation situations.
  • RCA2: Root Cause Analysis and Action
    • 4-hour table-top simulation with teams of interprofessional students investigating a patient safety event, identifying causal factors, and developing an action plan to prevent the same or a similar event from happening again.
  • Pediatrics Oncology IPE simulation
    • 2.5-hour simulation with teams of interprofessional students addressing the psychosocial and economic needs of the family of a newly diagnosed 7-year-old patient with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL). In part 1, the team huddles to plan their approach to conducting a family meeting. In part 2, the team meets with the family (HealthCAST actor) to assess their needs and provide support and resources.

Community

A variety of simulation activities/training workshops are developed, implemented and evaluated in partnership with health care organizations in the State of Hawaii. Each program is individualized to meet the unique needs of the user group and past partnerships include:

  • The Queen’s Health Systems – simulations focused on enhancing critical thinking, communication and team collaboration.
  • Hawaii Pacific Health – simulations ranging from birth to end of life scenarios.
  • LIFESAVE – Kupono Transport – simulations of emergency transport by air for interprofessional members of the air transport teams.

International

A variety of workshops are developed, implemented and evaluated in partnership with health care organizations and universities/schools from Asia and the Pacific Basin. Partnerships include faculty and student nurse training programs for:

  • Seitoku University (Japan)
  • Tokyo Healthcare University (Japan)
  • Wuhan University (China)
  • Hirosaki University (Japan)
  • Yokohama City University (Japan)
  • Fukuoka Jo Gakuin Nursing University (Japan)
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