The Comprehensive Textbook of Healthcare Simulation

Abstract

The use of human patient simulation for teaching aspects of anesthesiology has grown significantly over the last decade and a half. Anesthesia has been in the forefront of developing this technology and its use in medical education. Simulation has gone from a novelty to being recognized as an important modality for delivering curricula. All Canadian anesthesia residency programs, in varying degrees, incorporate simulation in their postgraduate medical education. The future use of simulation will become even more important. As residents’ duty hours become more limited, there will be heavier reliance on simulation to provide experience with rare life-threatening situations such as malignant hyperthermia or local anesthetic toxicity. The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada is moving towards competency-based medical education (CanMEDs 2015 and other initiatives). Integrating simulation in this process is essential for successful transition into a competency-based educational model. As the field of medical simulation has grown, so have the literature, technologies, and accompanying educational theories associated with it. Healthcare simulation is now at a point where a comprehensive textbook is needed. Dr. Levine and his associates identified the absence of a definitive resource and attempted to fill that void. As stated in the text’s introduction, ‘‘Many educators, researchers, and administrators are seeking a definitive up-to-date resource that addresses solutions to their needs in terms of training, assessment, and patient safety. Hence, we present this book The Comprehensive Textbook Of Healthcare Simulation’’. This textbook is very useful for those involved in healthcare simulation. It is an inclusive, current manual. The contributing authors list reads like a ‘‘who’s who’’ of healthcare simulation. It includes many pioneers in the field as well as numerous authors from Canadian universities who have provided chapters in their fields of expertise. There is also a global perspective, with contributors from the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. The textbook is well organized into five sections; Introduction, Simulation Modalities and Technologies, Simulation for Healthcare Disciplines, Professional Development in Simulation, and Program Development in Simulation. The Introduction covers the basics of simulation, including learning theory, simulation environments, and debriefing. It also tackles more complex subject matter such as crisis resource management and patient safety in simulation. I was surprised to see the chapters ‘‘Competency Assessment’’ and ‘‘Simulation for Licensure and Certification’’ in the Introduction. Both of these topics are timely and worthy of discussion within the simulation community. Competencybased medical education is looming on the horizon as CanMEDs 2015 is being developed. Simulation has already been introduced in high-stakes examinations, such as the Royal College examination process for anesthesiology, albeit not yet in a comprehensive fashion. The second section – Simulation Modalities and Technologies – serves as an excellent resource as it provides a detailed view of more than just high-fidelity simulation. There is comprehensive information on standardized patients as well as computerand web-based simulation. It also explores emerging technologies such as virtual reality and haptic simulation (tactile sensation in virtual reality). N. O’Regan, MD (&) Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, Canada e-mail: noel.oregan@med.mun.ca