About the Center for Simulation, Advanced Education and Innovation

The Center for Simulation, Advanced Education and Innovation at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) serves as the premier leader in pediatric simulation training, education and research, influencing and promoting simulation to improve healthcare quality and safety locally, nationally and internationally. The center has a long history of pioneering education and training, breakthrough research, and sustained quality improvement.

Mission Statement

To improve pediatric outcomes through optimizing the use of simulation in patient safety/quality improvement initiatives, education and research and through promoting a culture of safety and learning.

Vision Statement

Our vision is to be a center of excellence for pediatric simulation education, innovation and research, to improve healthcare quality, safety, and outcomes locally, nationally, and globally to promote patient centered and interprofessional collaborative care.

How the center makes an impact

The Center for Simulation provides opportunities for professionals to practice technical skills, medical judgment, and collaborative teamwork, using a variety of simulation modalities and methodologies including state-of-the-art simulators, human patient simulators, and task trainers. Incorporating simulators into clinical scenarios allows teams to practice together, enhancing communication and collaboration. Healthcare simulation provides a safe and supportive environment for immediate debriefing, enriching the learning experience. Simulation is a critical part of educating clinicians.

Each year, the center supports hundreds of simulations ― everything from a team responding to a child who collapses to residents practicing patient sedation. Simulations provide a safe yet realistic way for CHOP’s doctors and nurses to practice both skills and teamwork. After each simulation, the educator debriefs the team, drawing out the lessons that will make future encounters with real patients even safer.

“We don’t just ask, ‘What were you doing?' It’s, ‘What were you thinking? What was your thought process?’ Simulation is really good at getting to the why.” — Vinay Nadkarni, MD

Simulation in action

The Center for Simulation operates in numerous locations throughout the Hospital, bringing these practice sessions to the areas where real clinical groups work every day. This innovative model means, for example, that nurses from the Harriet and Ronald Lassin Newborn/Infant Intensive Care Unit (N/IICU) practice caring for infants in a room adjacent to the N/IICU. Fellows who must rush critically ill children from the helipad to the intensive care units can literally retrieve a SimBaby™ manikin from a helicopter on the roof, experiencing its real noise and commotion.

By participating in simulation, teams improve their coordination. Many teams even take the next step and generate ideas about how to improve the equipment and protocols, creating systems improvements. For example, the SDU developed and refined their Emergency Response Cart during a series of simulations.

Examples of simulation-based training and education

• Immersive simulations
• Skills training sessions
• Bootcamps

Other simulations modalities

• Systems and process testing
• Usability testing

Simulation facilitator development

• Facilitator training workshop 

Accreditations

The Center for Simulation, Advanced Education and Innovation is accredited by the American Society of Anesthesiologists and the Society for Simulation in Healthcare.