Indiana State University Newsroom

The Society for Simulation in Healthcare has granted accreditation to the Rural Health Innovation Collaborative Simulation Center.

The center is the first to be accredited in Indiana and one of only 38 centers nationwide to earn such recognition. Accreditation is granted only to those centers that demonstrate compliance with core standards for the use of simulation technology, educational methods and patient safety.

Simulation laboratories are used to create clinical scenarios to which students must react in real time. Realistic manikins are used in conjunction with skilled actors to provide lifelike training environments.

"Community partnership and inter-professional education is at the core of the Rural Health Innovation Collaborative's mission," said Stephanie Laws, executive director. "It is especially important in today's evolving health care environment to achieve the pursuit of improving the experience of care and improving the health of populations at lower costs. The Simulation Center plays an instrumental role in preparing a highly-skilled and well trained workforce to meet these needs."

Jack Jaeger, the center's director, said, "This prestigious accreditation demonstrates what we at the Simulation Center have been striving for since opening in 2011: The development of a facility that is recognized as one of the best in the nation at preparing healthcare professionals to safely care for their patients through inter-professional education. We are very proud and pleased to achieve such an honor."

The simulation center, located in Union Hospital's former intensive care unit, recently expanded its physical space and added additional high fidelity simulation equipment, allowing for exponential growth to the program, Jaeger noted.

The expansion includes a diagnostics lab that houses many of the center's most sophisticated technological pieces, including the Anatomage Table, which allows students to perform virtual 3-D dissections, and three virtual reality simulators. A new training center has been added, allowing students and current practitioners to practice a wide variety of procedural skills on their own time.The center's integrated audio visual system has been expanded to include a third control room, allowing the facility to accommodate three high-fidelity simulations at the same time.

Launched in 2008 to build on Terre Haute's position as a center for innovation in rural health care, the Rural Health Innovation Collaborative develops and implements health care policies and procedures for the unique needs of under-served rural communities and provides inter-professional education for current and future health care providers. The collaborative of 13 education, health care, government and community development partners is also working to revitalize a Terre Haute neighborhood that lies between the Indiana State University campus and Union Hospital.

Photo: http://isuphoto.smugmug.com/Other/Media-Services/Media-Health-and-Human-Perform/Social-Work-and-Nursing/i-BrDjqVQ/0/3X/Social_Work_and_Nursing_students_at_Simulation_Center_2014-22-3X.jpg - Jack Jaeger, director of the Rural Health Innovation Collaborative Simulation Center, helps Indiana State University nursing students during a training session March 22, 2014. The center is the first in Indiana to be accredited by the Society for Simulation in Health Care.

Photo: http://isuphoto.smugmug.com/Other/Headshot-Proofs/QT-Headshot-Proofs/Stephanie-Laws/i-cRhvR5F/0/3X/Stephanie_Laws-9092-3X.jpg - Stephanie Laws

Photo: http://isuphoto.smugmug.com/Other/Headshot-Proofs/IP-Portrait-Proofs/Jaeger-Jack/i-ZcL6czd/0/3X/10_28_11_Jaeger_jack-0060-3X.jpg - Jack Jaeger

Contact: Jack Jaeger, director, Simulation Center, Rural Health Innovation Collaborative, 812-238-4625 or jejaeger@uhhg.org

Writer: Dave Taylor, communications chair, Rural Health Innovation Collaborative, Indiana State University, 812-237-3743 or dave.taylor@indstate.edu