Simulator Gives Students Real-Life Experiences
By Joan Elliott, Missourian Feature Writer
11/26/2004
If he looks like a real person, talks, blinks, breathes and has a pulse like a real person, he must be a real person, right?
Wrong!
Stan, short for "standard man," is an emergency care simulator who "resides" in the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) quarters at East Central College (ECC). He's 5 foot 11 inches, weighs 167 pounds and has blue eyes and a "peachy" complexion.
Created in 1996 by Medical Education Technologies, Inc., in Sarasota, Fla., Stan has a fully computerized body that responds authentically to whatever care, right or wrong, students provide.
"If they make a big mistake, Stan can 'die,' " said Tom Fitts, EMS program coordinator, noting, happily, that he doesn't stay dead for long. "The best part is that students have the opportunity to go back and repeat the procedure, figure out where they made their mistake and redo it."
All Stan's bodily functions are coordinated and he's about as close to the "real McCoy" as a simulator could get. He can:
* exhale carbon dioxide;
* have a tracheotomy;
* produce an audible heartbeat;
* breathe, with chest rising and falling;
* be catherized;
* have IVs inserted;
* "speak" with a wireless microphone (and instructor assistance);
* change sexes with appropriate wigs, makeup and other add-ons and become "Sue."
In addition, his:
* pupils dilate;
* pulse can be felt at wrists, tops of feet, thighs and behind knees;
* urethane-silicon "skin" is soft in appropriate places, hard in others.
A seemingly endless number of scenarios can be created with Stan. If he has an asthma attack, for example, his breathing becomes labored and the oxygen level in his blood goes down. Students see it all on the monitor. If they do nothing and the oxygen level falls far enough, his eyes close and his breathing stops.
"At that point, students can still quickly remedy the situation by giving him real oxygen or simulate it on the computer," Fitts explained, noting that using real oxygen can become expensive. "There are also plugs to hook him to a heart monitor and shock him."
Stan allows students to see complicated situations that are very rare, according to Fitts. "For example, students may never see what happens when the vocal cord airway swells shut. Now we can run that scenario and deal with it. Because everything is integrated, students can do more in a real-time scenario."
Stan also has add-ons - vicious-looking burns or wounds that actually bleed fake blood or water through tiny holes in his skin.
He quietly acquiesces as he's poked, prodded, medicated, given a seizure, or sent into anaphylactic shock, giving students incredible, true-to-life experiences.
"There is also a software upgrade that includes weapons of mass destruction," Fitts said. "Kids can deal with exposure to biological weapons and anthrax without being in a hazardous sitation. They're not going to contaminate themselves."
Stan runs off compressed air and computer software. "The basis for Stan came from the aerospace industry where pilots have used simulators for years, repeating certain landings over and over until they're comfortable with them," Fitts said.
Under Stan's "skin" are a tangle of electrical, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic devices that control his many bodily functions. Hoses replicating arteries and veins serve as conduits for water and fake blood.
Fitts, who has been at ECC for almost three years, has 20 years in EMS. He teaches four Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) classes and one paramedic class a year, in addition to many refresher and certification classes. He also continues to work part time for the Washington Ambulance District and is a registered nurse.
He read about the emergency care and human patient simulators in a nursing journal several years ago. He applied for - and received - a grant to get the emergency care one for ECC. Stan's cost was $32,000 and the grant paid it all.
"The medical school version (human patient simulator) costs $200,000," Fitts said, "and the company is in the process of making a child, a baby and a dog (for veterinarians)."
Fitts noted that he actually prefers the version he has because it is portable, whereas the more expensive model, although it can do many more functions, has such a large computer that it can't be moved.
He also said theirs is one of two emergency care simulators in the state. "The other is owned by the Air Force Reserves in St. Louis.
Fitts knows he's still learning all Stan can do. "There's a long learning curve," he said. "I've gone through big owners manuals, also attended the annual conference in Sarasota. People from around the world came and shared their experiences (using Stan). I really learned a lot."
Fitts said the most gratifying part of using Stan is seeing his students' reactions. "At first they sometimes freak out," he said, "but they're having interactive experiences in a realistic situation. It reduces their anxiety because it's so lifelike and because they get to repeat procedures until they're comfortable with them."
The paramedic class finishing this fall will have two hours of one-on-one time with Stan to complete the class.
Fitts's goal for the spring is to offer more continuing education classes so people can learn EMS skills.
On Dec. 15, ECC will host an open house to demonstrate all Stan can do. "We're inviting all area EMS groups and anyone else who's interested in our EMS program," Fitts said.
Persons wanting more information about the open house can contact Fitts at 636-583-5195, extension 2493.
©Washington Missouri 2013
