Charles Lin, MD, MSc, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine in the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has been awarded a Beckwith Institute Frontline Innovation Grant for his project "Development of MediSimScaleTM: An Innovative and Structured Training Toolkit for Developing, Assessing, and Scaling Multidisciplinary Simulation Training Workshops Across UPMC."
This project also benefits from additional funding through a Society for Simulation in Healthcare Early Career Grant, as well as support from the Passavant Hospital Foundation, the Peter M. Winter Institute for Simulation, Education, and Research (WISER), and the Department of Nurse Anesthesia in the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Collaborators include other University of Pittsburgh faculty members John O’Donnell, DrPH, CRNA, Professor and Chair of the Department of Nurse Anesthesia, and Paul Phrampus, MD, MBA, Director of WISER and Professor of Emergency Medicine and Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine.
Dr. Lin’s project supports the expansion of a surgical airway simulation workshop from Passavant to other UPMC hospitals to inform the development of MediSimScale, a toolkit that will streamline the process for scaling simulation training by collecting efficacy and dissemination outcome data. The benefits of simplifying the process for widespread simulation adoption is more uniform clinical training across a healthcare system and improved patient safety. MediSimScale will maximize clinician reach and magnify the benefits of simulation teaching on patient care.
Simulation training has long been recognized as a powerful tool for enhancing clinical skills, yet workshops often remain limited to their originating sites. This lack of scalability results in inconsistent training and can hinder healthcare professionals from fully utilizing their expertise. MediSimScale seeks to overcome these challenges by streamlining the process of workshop implementation and assessment.
The team will begin the initiative with a “Train the Trainer Day,” preparing faculty at UPMC Presbyterian, Shadyside, Magee-Womens, Mercy, St. Margaret, and East hospitals to lead the surgical airway workshops. This rigorous, highly structured training program includes performance assessments and aims to standardize simulation practices across UPMC.
Looking ahead, Dr. Lin envisions MediSimScale as a transformative resource, enabling educators to extend their simulation programs beyond individual institutions. The toolkit’s scalability and impact have the potential to reach other healthcare systems and professional fields, ultimately improving training and patient care on a broader scale.
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