New simulator used in Little Rock nursing program to instruct students

Little Rock, Arkansas – The Center for Simulation Innovation at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock initially has a hospital-like appearance and sound.

It’s intended to simulate the actual thing for nursing students.

Jolesha Holder, a registered nurse who has been a licensed practical nurse for eight years, will receive her degree from the institution on Saturday.

She enrolled in the program to follow her love for aiding others.

“I want to do something where people wouldn’t mind trusting bringing their family member,” Holder said.

Another student, Caitlin Pipkin, agreed with Holder that the use of customized manikins helped to keep the experience authentic.

“You’ll have some patients that are very chill and laid back, soft-spoken,” Pipkin said. “Then you’ll have patients that are manic and all over the place.”

The program has never used technology like this, including virtual reality and interactive patients.

The following simulations teach students how to react: a wearable geriatric experience, an infection obstetric simulation, a multi-patient critical care simulation, a multi-patient mental health simulation, a simulation of elder abuse, and a simulation of elder abuse in an emergency room.

Dr. Joanna Hall, a former pupil and the director of the Center for Simulation Innovation, is all too aware of the importance of having the best tools possible while learning about nursing.

“There is something incredibly valuable for our students to be able to come in, act in the capacity of a nurse and make those mistakes,” Hall said.

The program’s goal is to make mistakes and work through them, according to Pipkin, who believes that this will assist her move into the working world at a real hospital.

“I would rather make every single mistake in my career in this room than on a real person,” Pipkin said.