that the students called “Mrs. Chase.” Although many clinical procedures could be practiced on this
teaching tool, the level of realism of that practice was extremely low by today’s standards.
For UW–Madison School of Nursing students, learning begins in the classroom. Early School curricula included a basic nursing component that was originally titled “Nursing Arts”, and later, “Fundamentals of Nursing.” This course included sessions in the classroom where students were allowed to practice and perform basic techniques, both on each other as well as on one of the School’s several manikins, all named Mrs. Chase after the Chase Company who manufactured them.
These life-sized manikins were made specifically for teaching and training nursing students, and were cutting-edge for their time. Subsequent models included “realistic” features such as jointed hips, elbows, and knees, and in later years hair, more realistic skin material, as well as added orifices. The manikins were the perfect tool for classroom instruction. Mrs. Chase was a staple at many nursing schools, including the School of Nursing, up until the 1980s, when more high-tech training manikins entered the academic realm.
Over the years, the long suffering Mrs. Chase endured many indignities, and even inspired a verse:
A Patient Patient
I think that I shall never see
A patient who so patiently
Lets strangers wash her hands and face
As our phlegmatic Mrs. Chase.
A patient who is calm repose
Lets “probies” irrigate her nose,
Or when they give her a hot pack,
She never murmurs or complains,
But in her state of calm remains
A credit to the human race,
A blessing on thee, Mrs. Chase!
Today’s simulation environments provide fully immersive hands-on learning opportunities thanks to high-fidelity manikins like Millie (left). A far cry from “Mrs. Chase,” today’s manikins — also called high-fidelity human patient simulators — provide helpful and realistic feedback. From heartbeats to groans, and even a manikin that simulates a birthing patient, these human patient simulators make it possible for students to hone their clinical judgment and practice skills while gaining critical hands-on experience not normally found in clinical rotations. Skills such as intravenous insertions, chest compressions, and much more, are all on the table in Cooper Hall’s simulation labs.
Various environments, ranging from a hospital setting to a home environment, prepare students for practice in settings where care is delivered. When Millie was part of the simulation rotation, nursing students visited her in her home — a simulated apartment located on the second floor of Signe Skott Cooper Hall — to learn how to make accurate assessments during home health visits with seniors. The simulation staging included scenarios with items like scattered medicine bottles, cat toys on the floor, rugs in high-traffic areas, burned oven mitts, and other signs of concern that students should identify during the simulation exercise.
The simulated home environment is one of many lifelike environments that provide students with a safe learning space to perform hands-on learning and realistic assessments. More than half of Cooper Hall’s second floor is devoted to these simulation spaces, which are housed in the Center for Technology-Enhanced Nursing (CTEN).
Located in CTEN, the Shapiro Hospital Suite simulation space includes a patient and visitor waiting area, four hospital rooms, two control rooms, two debriefing rooms, a fully functional patient bathroom, a medication room, as well as a full nurses’ station.
Down the hall, the Weikel Clinical Education Suite helps students develop and practice nursing skills in a fully functioning clinic. The clinic area allows students to practice with specially trained actors who simulate behaviors and symptoms of real patients in different scenarios. Nearby, the eHealth Laboratory familiarizes students with the quickly developing discipline of e-health and telehealthcare. The clinical suite includes six examination rooms, a large skills lab, and a patient waiting area. These active learning environments address the need for team-based, patient-centered care that stretches from the first clinic visit or hospital admission to in-home monitoring.
When clinical sites were unable to allow student nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic, use of the CTEN ensured that students completed their clinical hours. It assured mastery of skills and progression toward graduation., the remainder of their clinical hours were completed in CTEN, ensuring on-time completion for graduating students.
The lifelike simulations in the various CTEN simulation suites enable students to practice complex and less familiar situations, supplementing what they learn in their clinical experiences. They can safely test their knowledge while improving their skills and confidence.