Advanced training at all four of Ascension St. Vincent's hospitals is better preparing its care teams for the next time local families have an emergency.
SEAL (Simulating Emergency Action for Life) Team Medical Director Dr. Jeffery Beard and Richard Vigil, BSN, RN, have led 700 health care professionals across 12 health care locations through training designed to familiarize them with emergency situations they may not see frequently.
“We get to practice, if you will, the emergency settings that we don’t get to practice on a routine basis,” said Beard. “So those practices become more muscle memory and helps them perform them successfully when the time comes and a true emergency arises.” The fully immersive training program utilizes incredibly lifelike pediatric mannequins, with a curriculum designed to keep providers’ skills sharp while increasing their comfort with emergencies they may not encounter regularly.
The curriculum, which can be tailored to the skill level of the audience and their needs, covers advanced scenarios with a focus on early recognition of children in distressed states to avoid a full-code situation. These mannequins can simulate various physiological conditions, such as crying, eyes that open and close, pupils that dilate, variations in heart rate and respiratory function, and even seizures.
“When a child is critically ill, that’s a scary moment for every team member,” said Dr. Kelvin Harold, an emergency department physician at Ascension St. Vincent's Riverside. “To have that extra training where you work with a team in a high-stress environment to take care of a high-stakes situation; that is an incredible opportunity to sharpen our sword to fight off illness.”
As Ascension Florida expands its health care footprint across the region, SEAL training will ensure children and their families will continue to receive the safest, highest level of care and specialized expertise available. The SEAL team plans to acquire two more high-fidelity mannequins that will expand their impact.
Plans are underway to establish a dedicated simulation center within Studer Family Children’s Hospital in Pensacola, an Ascension hospital where the team is based.
