AusSETT an asset for medical students
Simulation provides students with a realistic experience and can use computer-based manikins, and may use cadavers or animal tissue
Medical students will enhance their clinical healthcare skills following the development of a new program to expand realistic simulated learning environments (SLE) in Australian universities.
By training simulation educators around the country over two years, the Australian Simulation Education and Technical Training program (AusSETT) aims to increase the clinical training capacity of healthcare professionals.
SLE provides a realistic re-enactment of clinical situations, such as surgery, where students step into a role in a non-threatening learning environment.
The Health Workforce Australia (HWA)-funded program is led by Monash University, in collaboration with the Edith Cowan University, Flinders University, The University of Melbourne, The University of Queensland and Queensland Health.
A team of experienced simulation educators led by Debra Nestel, Professor of Medical Education at Monash University’s Gippsland Medical School, developed the national training program, which comprises web-based and face-to-face workshop modules.
“AusSETT was designed to provide a standardised national training program for simulation educators and technicians,” Professor Nestel said.
“SLE facilitates practice, enhances transfer of theoretical knowledge to the clinical context and supports the transition of students into the workforce.
“Over the next two years, more than 6000 educators across the country will be trained in the use of simulation as an educational method. Approximately 1300 of these people will be from Victoria.”
Professor Nestel said clinical situations for teaching and learning purposes were created using manikins, part-task trainers, simulated patients or computer-generated simulations.
“SLEs are widely used teaching and learning strategies in medical education to support the development of patient-centred communication skills, using an actor trained to portray a real patient,” Professor Nestel said
“Simple audio-visual capture to replay the consultation with the learners and simulated patient sharing feedback are also well established as effective educational methods."
SLE is one of the key programs that Health Workforce Australia is undertaking as a result of the work being implemented under the National Partnership Agreement on Hospital and Health Workforce Reform.
For further information, visit the AusSETT website.