More than 200 health care simulation professionals from around the world are at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center this week for the eighth-annual health care simulation technology conference planned by SimGHOSTS, an international nonprofit organization providing training, resources, and support for simulation technicians and those involved with health care simulation.
The four-day conference, which begins today and runs through noon Friday, is being hosted by UTHSC’s new Center for Healthcare Improvement and Patient Simulation (CHIPS). The 45,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art simulation facility opened its doors in May.
“We’re extremely excited to be able to host our conference at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center,” said Executive Director Kirrian Steer of SimGHOSTS, which stands for The Gathering Of Healthcare Simulation Technology Specialists. “The fact we can take advantage of the beautiful new CHIPS center makes it all the more exciting for us. To stand alongside one of the world’s foremost simulation facilities is truly a privilege.”
CHIPS is dedicated to improving health care training and positively affecting patient safety by allowing students from the six colleges at UTHSC – Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Health Professions, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy – to train together to deliver team-based care, the gold standard for quality health care.
“This shines a spotlight on the world-class facility we’ve built,” said Chad Epps, MD, executive director of CHIPS. “Making our facility available for these types of events demonstrates our desire to continue growing and developing our community of practice.”
Dr. Epps said SimGHOSTS considers the top simulation facilities in the country to host the annual conference. “It makes sense that our first year open, they would want to hold the conference here,” he said.
During the conference, simulation personnel, who have traveled from as far away as Australia, Qatar, the United Kingdom, and Ethiopia, will receive hands-on training in eight subjects necessary to successfully integrate, operate, and maintain advanced health care simulation technologies.
An Innovation Showcase will allow those who work with health care simulation technology to demonstrate solutions to the challenges faced in successfully simulating clinical conditions and environments.
Level 3 Healthcare, which integrates audiovisual technology into medical work spaces, clinical training centers and simulation labs, is the platinum sponsor for this year’s event. The company is the distributor of SIMStation, state-of-the-art audio/visual debriefing systems. Level 3 Healthcare’s Director of Simulation David Escobar will deliver the keynote address Wednesday morning, focusing on the value and contribution of health care simulation technology specialists to health professional education and quality and safety in health care.