Simulation. |
What is simulation?
Simulation-based education is a teaching strategy for health professional education which is increasingly being used in clinical education settings throughout Australia.
Simulation is described as “an imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system”. In health professional education, it is “a technique to replace or amplify real experiences with guided experiences, often immersive in nature, that evoke or replicate aspects of the real world in an interactive fashion”.
Simulation isn’t a technology; it is the recreation of real life events in which people can engage “as if” for real, giving them opportunities to practice and refine skills. In other words, simulation is an educational activity where reality is recreated to allow people to be immersed in an experience and learn from that experience.
In physiotherapy education, simulation involves learners interacting as “therapists” in a clinical scenario with a “patient”, where they assess and treat the patient as if they were real. After the simulation, debriefing occurs so that feedback can be shared, and learning points are clarified for future improved practice.
Simulation-based education is very effective for physiotherapy education, and provides excellent learning opportunities for physiotherapists that are enjoyable and directly support the development of competencies to practice physiotherapy.
We are passionate about simulation education because it provides immersive experiences for practitioners that look and feel like the real clinical environment. Additionally, simulation education is free from the risks associated with “real” patients, meaning that if a mistake is made, learning can occur and patients are not harmed. This enables educators to specifically tailor learning experiences to the needs and goals of practitioners.
Simulation is described as “an imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system”. In health professional education, it is “a technique to replace or amplify real experiences with guided experiences, often immersive in nature, that evoke or replicate aspects of the real world in an interactive fashion”.
Simulation isn’t a technology; it is the recreation of real life events in which people can engage “as if” for real, giving them opportunities to practice and refine skills. In other words, simulation is an educational activity where reality is recreated to allow people to be immersed in an experience and learn from that experience.
In physiotherapy education, simulation involves learners interacting as “therapists” in a clinical scenario with a “patient”, where they assess and treat the patient as if they were real. After the simulation, debriefing occurs so that feedback can be shared, and learning points are clarified for future improved practice.
Simulation-based education is very effective for physiotherapy education, and provides excellent learning opportunities for physiotherapists that are enjoyable and directly support the development of competencies to practice physiotherapy.
We are passionate about simulation education because it provides immersive experiences for practitioners that look and feel like the real clinical environment. Additionally, simulation education is free from the risks associated with “real” patients, meaning that if a mistake is made, learning can occur and patients are not harmed. This enables educators to specifically tailor learning experiences to the needs and goals of practitioners.
Simulation in physiotherapy education in Australia
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Australia is seen as a world leader in the use and development of simulation as educational tool in the clinical health sector.
The National Simulation Project was world-first initiative which has changed the face of education and training for physiotherapy students across Australia. The large-scale project, supported by Health Workforce Australia, rolled-out innovative simulation programs, using mostly professional actors as patients, into 16 of the 19 Australian physiotherapy courses across 2014 and 2015. As a result of the project, simulation has become an integral part of physiotherapy education in this country and is now provided as a component of all Australian physiotherapy courses. |
Simulation as an assessment model for international physiotherapists
In this video, Physiotherapy Education Australia Director Felicity Blackstock talks about a her role in a recent pioneering research trial , conducted in partnership between the Australian Physiotherapy Council and Western Sydney University, to investigate the effectiveness and reliability of Simulation as an assessment method in determining competency to practice physiotherapy in Australia.
For more insights on how simulation is being used by the Australian Physiotherapy Council, watch more videos featured in The Council's Simulation Series, including a video tour of the APC simulation lab, the facility where we conduct our workshops. |
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