Elsevier

Obstetrics & Gynecology

Volume 102, Issue 2, August 2003, Pages 388-392
Obstetrics & Gynecology

Current commentary
Simulation laboratories for training in obstetrics and gynecology

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0029-7844(03)00483-6Get rights and content

Abstract

Simulations have been used by the military, airline industry, and our colleagues in other medical specialties to educate, evaluate, and prepare for rare but life-threatening scenarios. Work hour limits for residents in obstetrics and gynecology and decreased patient availability for teaching of students and residents require us to think creatively and practically on how to optimize their education. Medical simulations may address scenarios in clinical practice that are considered important to know or understand. Simulations can take many forms, including computer programs, models or mannequins, virtual reality data immersion caves, and a combination of formats. The purpose of this commentary is to call attention to a potential role for medical simulation in obstetrics and gynecology. We briefly describe an example of how simulation may be incorporated into obstetric and gynecologic residency training. It is our contention that educators in obstetrics and gynecology should be aware of the potential for simulation in education. We hope this commentary will stimulate interest in the field, lead to validation studies, and improve training in and the practice of obstetrics and gynecology.

Section snippets

The origins of medical simulation

Medical simulation likely predates recorded history. Stone carvings from the Fertile Crescent during the Paleolithic period indicate that prehistoric humans placed a special interest in childbirth. The archaeological record shows that the ancestors to the Siberian Mansai people produced scale leather birth models of women. Presumably these were used in rituals and to teach the maneuvers of assisted birth. Plastic, rubber, and cloth birth dolls are still used in labor and delivery units to teach

The current rationale for implementing simulation

Military simulators, particularly aviation simulators, have much in common with medical simulators. Medical simulation, like aviation simulation, involves the application of complex decision making, time-sensitive action, and skilled tasks. Medical simulations are similar to flying a plane inasmuch as the tasks are confined to a finite space. In aviation, this space is the cockpit. In medical simulation it may be a treatment room or an operating room. Most importantly, learning to treat and

Evolution of medical simulation in obstetric and gynecologic training

The National Capital Consortium consists of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and the military teaching hospitals in the Washington, DC, area. It is endowed with several medical simulation facilities on campus and in the teaching hospitals, including robotic anesthesia simulators, ultrasound simulators, endoscopy simulators, patient actor rooms, and an anthropomorphic robotic birth simulator. Also available to the consortium are simulation workshops connected to the World

Future role of simulation in obstetrics and gynecology

Medical simulation may be an ancient art, but it is a young science, one just now finding a foothold at our institutions of higher learning. This newness is not necessarily a handicap but could be a great advantage. Simulation as a science has grown within other communities, and the hard lessons learned in these disciplines could be used by organized medicine to build even better systems. Residents and students within the National Capital Consortium work with the faculty to modify and improve

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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Uniformed Services University, the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Air Force, or the Department of Defense.

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