SUNY Downstate Opens Advanced Learning Resource Center:
Dec 3, 2008
Lifelike Mannequin Is Featured Addition to Teaching Tools
Brooklyn, NY - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University has opened an Advanced Learning Resource Center (ALRC), a multi-disciplinary teaching and training facility featuring iStan, a lifelike patient simulator mannequin used to teach students and train health professionals.
The mannequin’s human patient simulation technology not only mimics symptoms but also responds directly to treatment administered by trainees including oxygen, intravenous drugs, and defibrillation, bringing real life emergency scenarios to the training field.
The ALRC is also designed as a model for interdisciplinary training. John C. LaRosa, MD, president of Downstate, said, “We have talked a long time about training health professionals together, because we never work in a vacuum. Physicians, nurses, and other health professionals work together. This new technology makes it possible for us to learn together.”
Downstate’s ALRC is based in the Medical Library and represents the first phase of an ongoing process to enlarge interdisciplinary simulated learning. The iStan mannequins are also used by the Department of Emergency Medicine for special classes in the emergency rooms at Downstate’s University Hospital at Downstate and at Kings County Hospital Center. An iStan mannequin was recently featured on an episode of the television series, “Grey’s Anatomy.”
Downstate employs its patient simulator mannequins for training in the increasingly important area of using ultrasound for diagnosing a variety of conditions in emergency situations. According to the Radiological Society of North America, ultrasound can offer real-time delineation of various pathologies, which is especially useful in the emergency room setting.
Before patient simulation, healthcare trainees were restricted to practicing on unresponsive mannequins. Simulation provides a lifelike, interactive and visual solution to train those we depend on to protect us in health emergencies.
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About SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn is one of four academic health centers (AMCs) in The State University of New York (SUNY) 64-campus system and the only SUNY AMC in New York City dedicated to health education, research, and patient care for the borough’s 2.7 million residents. Its flagship hospital, University Hospital at Downstate (UHD), is a teaching hospital and benefits from the expertise of Downstate’s exceptional medical school and world-class academic center research facilities. With a staff of over 800 physicians representing 53 specialties and subspecialties, Downstate offers comprehensive healthcare services to the community.
UHD provides high-risk neonatal and infant services, pediatric nephrology, and dialysis for kidney diseases and is the only kidney transplantation program in Brooklyn. Beyond its clinical expertise, Downstate houses a range of esteemed educational institutions, including its College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, School of Graduate Studies, and School of Public Health. Downstate fosters innovation through its multifaceted biotechnology initiative, the Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT, which support early-stage and more mature biotech companies.