Cheryl O’Brien, education manager, and Karen Cole, diabetes educator work with Sim Man.

OGDENSBURG – Staff at Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center are using a simulation room and a mannequin to replicate clinical situations in a non-threatening environment.

The hospital recently built the simulation center in collaboration with Chart Institute, their insurer.

The dedicated hospital room is set up like a real patient’s room, with a mannequin, a Sim Man on loan from Chart Institute, that breathes, has a heartbeat with pulses, blinks, and speaks, to name of few of its features. The simulation room will be used with clinical staff such as nurses, and nursing assistants to practice life-like patient situations such as heart attacks, cardiac arrest and surgical complications. Basic skills such as taking a blood pressure or positioning a patient can also be practiced.

In such a situation, staff can practice, no one gets hurt, and staff confidence and competence increases. There is freedom to make mistakes in the simulation center. They can also rehearse difficult or rare situations, such as unusual symptoms of a heart attack. Teamwork and communication can improve. Studies show simulation improves patient safety.

To debut the new simulation center, the hospital is hosting an open house from 2-7 p.m Thursday, Sept. 6, in patient room 230.