Page 17 - College Planning & Management, March 2019

environment that feels familiar, they will be more confident and efficient and better able to provide great patient care.
Where appropriate, local providers should be included on the planning team so they can provide input. In communities with multiple providers, simulation labs should defer to the “Guidelines for Design and Construction” published by the Facility Guidelines Institute.
2. Debrief Rooms. Debrief rooms, where educators and students gather following a simulation exercise, are essential to the “reflection” part of experiential learning, providing a place and the technology needed for instructors to review and offer feedback on the students’ work.
A debriefing often takes longer to complete than the simulation exercise itself. Simulation labs should, therefore, include more de- brief rooms than procedure rooms to maximize use of the procedure rooms while also enabling thorough debriefings. Debrief rooms should be located near the procedure rooms and include appropriate technology and flexible furniture to encourage interaction.
3. Adequate Space. The emphasis on interdisciplinary collabo- ration often means that groups completing simulation exercises are larger. Procedure and debrief rooms should be planned to com- fortably accommodate them.
4. Variety of Settings. Simulation labs should reflect the vari- ety of spaces in which health care professionals interact with each other and with patients and their loved ones. Many conversations between providers and patients and their families take place away from the exam table or bedside. They occur at the nurses’ station, in the family center, in a lounge area, or in the patient’s home. Simulation labs should include similar “soft” spaces so students can gain experience having these highly personal discussions.
In-home care is becoming increasingly common, and how col- leges and universities train for that is important. Including a full- size apartment mock-up in the simulation lab allows students to practice working in an environment that requires moving patients over various floor coverings or navigating narrow doorways and small bathrooms.
In clinical environments, the nurses’ station is where col- leagues from various disciplines share information and collabo- rate. Providing a similar space in the sim lab fosters teamwork and communication among students and faculty. In the Nursing Education Building One on the Union Square campus in Greens- boro, NC, for example, the heart of the simulation lab is the “Col- laboration Station.” Centrally located and within view of various mock procedure rooms, debrief rooms, and observation rooms, it is the starting point for many exercises and a gathering place for discussion and idea-sharing.
Setting the Stage for Standardized Patients
Exercises involving standardized patients (SPs)—actors specially trained to portray patients—enable students to develop
diagnostic skills and hone beside manners. The design of the area surrounding the mock exam rooms used should set the stage.
Students should not see SPs before an exercise begins, as it can subconsciously influence students’ perceptions of the SPs and af- fect their performance. There should be an “off-stage” area where SPs receive their instructions and wait for the exercise to begin, as well as separate entrances to the exam room for students and SPs.
Supporting Interdisciplinary Education
Collaborative practice is becoming the norm in health care, with multi-disciplinary teams—physicians, nurses, PAs, dentists, phar- macists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, mental health professionals, and others—working together to provide compre- hensive, individualized care. Colleges and universities are preparing their students by adopting curricula that have students from various programs not only attend classes together but also actively work together. Facility designs should support this paradigm.
The home of the Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences
at Mary Baldwin University in Fishersville, VA, was designed to create such an experience. Lab spaces for the physical therapy, occupational therapy, and nursing programs accommodate larger class sizes for courses that combine students from all majors. The four large active learning classrooms also promote interdisciplin- ary collaboration. Furniture can be easily rearranged based on the demands of the assignment, or even pushed aside completely. Flat screens capable of presenting four pieces of information simul- taneously are placed throughout the room, enabling students to
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