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How medical mannequins are helping make better caregivers at Providence Swedish

More than 400 caregivers go through this training facility a year. Sponsored by Providence Swedish.

SEATTLE — A group of new caregivers are huddled around a hospital bed waiting for the birth of a new baby. But this is not a real birth. This is a simulation – one of hundreds the healthcare provider does for training purposes every year. 

The Providence Swedish simulation center is located on the Cherry Hill campus. It is an 11,000 square foot high fidelity simulation center that has focused on training nurse, residents and fellows through their residency program since 2014.

"The simulations that they're doing are what we call high stakes, low-frequency events," Zach Eastwood, manager of Providence Swedish Simulation Center said. "Things that might take months or even years to witness in real life, we can do them here in the simulation center. They truly get to be hands-on, call the shots, run the scenario and it's a safe place for them to make mistakes, to fail, to mess up. We want them to do that here in the safe environment so they can learn from those mistakes and then provide, ultimately, the best patient care."

Laying in for real patients - high-tech mannequins that can mimic human behavior.

"So, they bleed, they sweat, they cry, they have chest rise, they have vital sounds, anterior, posterior, pulses in all the areas you would expect," said Eastwood. "We've got one of my SimTech in the control booth playing the voice of the patient. The SimTech is also controlling the AV system."

Credit: Providence Swedish
The high-tech mannequins at the Swedish Simulation Center can sweat, cry, and give off vital signs.

After the simulations, the future caregivers gather to break down what they've learned.

"We will go through, how did it feel, what went well, what didn't go well. We'll go through this scenario, what's happening with a patient," said Maggie Bissel, a Development Specialist in the Simulation Center. "To see those learners having those light bulbs go off in that safe environment, it's wonderful."

"Knowing that we're making a difference in these caregivers and patient outcomes, knowing that we're helping them to become the best caregivers they can [be] and to provide better patient care for our community is really awesome," Eastwood said.

Sponsored by Providence Swedish

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