October/November/December 2020 I 69
Students rotate through each simulation and after each
encounter, both the student and the patient complete
documentation typically on computers. The student
commonly uses an annotation station in the corridor
while the patient does their annotation on the in-room
computer (Figure 5).
FIGURE 5: Learner entrance to standardized patient exam rooms.
FIGURE 6: Simulation control room/observation room.
of Kansas Medical Center, “when we have practicing
learners participate in simulation events we attempt
to have the equipment they use match what they have
available in the real world. The more realistic you can
make a simulation room look for learners, the easier
it is for them to actively participate in the simulation
and buy into the learning process.”
Most large simulation centers have dedicated
control or observation rooms. These may be located
between every few simulation rooms or may consist
of a single large control room with multiple control
stations. Facilitators in the control room adjust devices
in the simulation space to mimic different medical
and environmental conditions. They provide communication
into the simulation rooms, observe the
learner’s performance and collect data (Figure 6).
Simulations can be held in a classroom, flexible
environment or in spaces specifically designed for
simulation practice. While some locations represent
a specific medical environment, such as a labor and
delivery room or operating room, others allow for
enactment of a variety of events and medical needs.
According to Amy Follmer, certified healthcare simulation
operations specialist (CHSOS) with the Zamierowski
Institute for Experiential Learning, a partnership of the
University of Kansas Health System and the University