Contact: Gary Kohn (608) 757-7769 or cell
(608) 436-9578
gkohn@blackhawk.edu
Blackhawk Technical College and Monroe Clinic
to host simulation lab open house
MONROE, WI – Blackhawk Technical College and Monroe Clinic are sponsoring an open house to demonstrate the two new simulation mannequins the two institutions are using to educate students and professionals in the healthcare and public safety fields.
The open house will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 28, in the St. Clare Center, at the Monroe Clinic between 4 and 6 p.m. It will unveil the adult and child simulation mannequins now being used by BTC students in the Nursing, Advanced Nursing Assistant and Emergency Medical Services programs. Monroe Clinic, which houses the simulation lab, uses the mannequins for patient care and nursing orientation, certifications and in its residency program.
The open house will include tours of the simulation lab. A ribbon cutting ceremony with BTC President Thomas Eckert, Monroe Clinic President and CEO Michael Sanders and members of the Monroe Chamber of Commerce is scheduled for 5:15 p.m.
BTC and Monroe Clinic started to investigate collaborating on the simulation lab in 2013 and reached an agreement last June. BTC purchased the two mannequins from CAE Healthcare in Canada while Monroe Clinic provided the space needed for the simulation training.
Dawn Blanton, BTC’s simulation specialist, and Sharon Schmidt, Monroe Clinic clinical educator, were instrumental in getting the two organizations to reach an agreement. Recently, the two made a presentation at a conference in Wausau that showed how the two organizations reached an agreement and how other education and medical institutions may be able to follow the example.
One simulator mirrors the medical responses of a child of 6; the other presents the medical challenges of an adult. A computer is used to activate a variety of medical reactions in the mannequins, which allows students to respond to medical situations in real time. Both mannequins have the ability to demonstrate changes in blood pressure and temperature based on a treatment being used.
There is voice simulation equipment in both, so the simulation operator can have the mannequins speak to the person being trained and describe different conditions.
A camera system also has been installed, which allows those in training to benefit from a video review during the simulation debriefing process.
Sponsored by the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes, the Monroe Clinic offers health care in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. The St. Clare Center is located at 515 22nd Ave., Monroe.
ABOUT BLACKHAWK TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Blackhawk Technical College is part of the Wisconsin Technical College System. BTC has five campus locations in Monroe, Beloit and Janesville, WI offering more than 50 programs including two-year associate degrees, one- and two-year technical diplomas and short-term technical diplomas. In addition, BTC is a major provider of customized training and technical assistance for the Rock and Green County business community. More than half of all adults living in Wisconsin have accessed the technical colleges for education and training during the last decade.
