A practical applied learning environment
Applied learning in the Centre for Health Sciences is taken to an entirely new level within the Simulated Practice Centre (SPC). This high
tech environment is meant to simulate the hospital and home settings where you will eventually work. The SPC includes a replicated critical
care unit, an operating room and even a separate “home apartment.” As a Centre for Health Sciences student, you will be exposed
to the realities of your job early on so that you are prepared to do the job right after graduation.
The next best thing to real patients
In the Centre for Health Sciences you will experience the merging of theory and practice in a controlled setting. And you won’t have
to worry about making mistakes because you will be practicing on high tech mannequins—the next best thing to human patients. The advanced
facility incorporates an electronic health records system and video camera broadcast system. But perhaps most exciting of all are the complex
simulation mannequins, which can be programmed to demonstrate changes in breathing, hear rate, and blood pressure.
"The student will assess the mannequin and determine what action is required. If the student makes the wrong choice, the condition of
the mannequin will deteriorate and it can even turn blue if there is not enough oxygen," says Diniz. "Time spent in simulation labs
prepares students to critically think through complex case situations, prior to clinical experience in a practice placement or work environment."
The ideal environment for collaboration
Your student colleagues in the Centre for Health Sciences will include nurses, personal support workers, fitness and lifestyle management
students, dental hygiene and orthotics and prosthetics students among many others from across the health-care spectrum. Working with them will
give you an in-depth understanding of what interprofessional health care is all about.
You won’t just learn from your George Brown student colleagues—the SPC attracts students from external professional schools including
medical schools.
The SPC is not the only applied learning environment at George Brown’s Centre for Health Sciences - educational spaces designed to help
students integrate theory with practice. "An applied learning environment allows students to practice and problem solve in interprofessional
teams, which is not always possible in placement settings such as a hospital or community environments," says Lorie Shekter-Wolfson, Dean,
Community Services and Health Sciences.
The Interprofessional Learning Clinic is both a site of real-world training for students, and a source of general health services for the
community. Click here to learn more about the ILC.
Opportunities for Industry and the Community
The SPC is also a place for research and development of new products and procedures. George Brown partners utilize the simulated practice
centre as a safe environment to explore new public health procedures and test new technology.
SPC In the News
Minister of Health and Long-Term Care George Smitherman unveils mannequins at George
Brown College’s Simulated Practice Centre (February
5, 2007). |
