St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children on Thursday, July 25, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the opening of their new simulation lab, which is meant to help train staff, parents and caregivers on how to take care of their medically fragile kids.
The tailored training available at the simulation lab relates to pediatric-focused life safety techniques and other clinical care skills on how to provide the highest quality of care to medically fragile children. This simulation lab allows for the practice of handling real-world medical scenarios while eliminating the risks that may come with training with real patients.
Thanks to this simulation lab, St. Mary’s will be more capable in their ability to train parents and caregivers on how to prepare for their child’s safe discharge and how to care for them at home. They can practice the skills involved with this as much as they want to, without having to be concerned about the safety of their children. The lab enables them to familiarize themselves with the equipment utilized by the children on a daily basis. The training is based around the unique individual needs of each child.
St. Mary’s encourages parents and caretakers to return to the lab periodically and refresh their skills while also learning about potential new developments in order to stay up to date with the best practices for their child’s care.
“At St. Mary’s we are always looking for new innovative technologies to help us support our parents and staff in providing the best possible care to our unique patients,” St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children President and CEO Dr. Edwin Simpser said. “This simulation lab will bring hope and healing to our families by teaching them about patient care in a low-risk environment, so that they will eventually be able to care for their medically fragile child independently at home. It’s really a dream come true for many of our parents!”
The lab features five patient beds meant to simulate medical situations varying by gender, medical complexity and age of the patient. All medical equipment required for various medical situations are featured there, helping the users gain clinical confidence and empowering staff, parents and caregivers to learn about how to care for patients without any distractions.
Located at 29-01 216th St. in Bayside, St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children has been the primary provider of long-term and rehabilitative care for the most critically ill and injured children in New York State since it first opened in the 1870s. They are one of just a handful of organizations across the United States that dedicate themselves to providing intensive rehabilitation, specialized care and education to children with special needs and life-limiting conditions.
