By MOHAMED FARGHALY | mfarghaly@queensledger.com

St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children has launched a new Simulation Lab to provide tailored training for staff and caregivers on pediatric life safety and clinical care skills, ensuring a safe transition for medically fragile children from hospital to home. Photo courtesy of St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children

St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children recently celebrated the ribbon cutting for its new Simulation Lab, an innovative facility designed to provide tailored training on pediatric-focused life safety techniques and clinical care skills. The lab aims to prepare parents and caregivers to care for their medically fragile children at home, ensuring a safe discharge from the hospital.

St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children has been the primary provider of long-term and rehabilitative care for New York’s most critically ill and injured children since the 1870s. St. Mary’s is one of a handful of organizations nationwide dedicated to providing intensive rehabilitation, specialized care, and education to children with special needs and life-limiting conditions.

The Simulation Lab offers a controlled environment where staff and caregivers can practice handling real-world medical scenarios without the risks associated with practicing on patients. This new program significantly enhances St. Mary’s capabilities to train parents, allowing them to practice skills repeatedly without compromising their child’s safety.

The lab, featuring high-fidelity simulators and extensive medical equipment, enables practice in a risk-free environment, enhancing preparedness and confidence for both parents and healthcare professionals. Photo courtesy of St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children

The lab enables parents to familiarize themselves with the equipment their child uses daily, with training customized to each child’s unique needs. Parents are welcome to return periodically to refresh their skills and stay updated on best practices.

“At St. Mary’s we are always looking for new innovative technologies to help us support our parents and staff in providing the best possible care to our unique patients, “ Dr. Edwin Simpser, President and CEO of St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children said. “This Simulation Lab will bring hope and healing to our families by teaching them about patient care in a low-risk environment, so that they will eventually be able to care for their medically fragile child independently at home. It’s really a dream come true for many of our parents!“

The lab features five patient beds that simulate various medical situations, covering different genders, medical complexities, and patient ages. It includes all necessary medical equipment to help users build clinical confidence and empower caregivers and staff to learn about patient care without distractions.

Bency Massinello, VP of Inpatient Nursing at St. Mary’s, emphasized the significance of the lab.

“Our role is to make sure that our children are able to get trained, families are able to get trained, and children are stabilized enough to be integrated back into the community,” she said. “The simulation lab was a vision we had for many years… We partnered with Lara Simulation Center to set up a program with high-fidelity simulators that simulate real-life scenarios as closely as possible.”

The Simulation Lab has been in development since 2018, with full approval and funding secured by 2021. Despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues, the lab was completed this year in partnership with Laerdal Medical, a company specializing in simulation training.

“Our goal is to ensure that staff and caregivers can practice and get competent in a safe environment without fear of harming a child,” Massinello said. “Nursing staff or any clinician typically spend three to four years in university learning how to perform their tasks. Our goal with this lab is to ensure guardians and parents, who may only have a crash course, are equally prepared.”

St. Mary’s plans to expand the lab’s use beyond hospital staff and parents, offering training opportunities to the broader community and enhancing overall healthcare education.

“The board of directors are fully invested and engaged… The interest is definitely there, and we’re excited to keep expanding and working on it,” Massinello said. “Simulation has become a crucial part of professional development, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. It allows us to manage training within our St. Mary’s community and extend support beyond home care services and case management.”