Simulation based training in the healthcare arena is playing an increasing and significant role in the education of the next generation of healthcare trainees and professionals to give them the knowledge, the competence and confidence they need to apply their new skills in the real world. However, effective training is always a challenge and more so for a modality like ultrasound imaging. With over 30 years of ‘sadhana’ of assimilating and understanding ultrasound and imparting education and training, we at Mediscan believe that effective "hands on" skill is the toughest to achieve. It entails a supervisor "hand holding the doctors" to help them understand the nuances of transducer movement to ensure that, "correct plane of section is obtained” for optimizing diagnosis.
The comprehensive obstetric and ultrasound mannequin simulator with 60 different pathologies is like 'Aksharabyasa' to ultrasound trainees which is the traditional process of the parent initiating a child into learning to write the primordial AUM and completing his education successfully. Our Aksharabyasa mannequin resembles a woman in supine position with orientation of the probe position and foetal position in the gravid uterus. It’s a virtual real - time environment which simulates a real patient with a live foetus designed to work across all gestational groups. One can compare virtual anatomy along with ultrasonography and the teacher can hand-hold the student while teaching and training.
Simulation makes it possible to perform standard foetal biometric measurements, calculations, "M-mode" and generate a complete ultrasound.
The first Vimedex obgyn simulator program of Mediscan was inaugurated in April 2015 in Chennai by The Vice-Chancellor of Sri Ramachandra University Dr. I.S.N. Murthy MD (Gen.Med.), DNB (Cardiology), FRCP (London), FRCP (Glasgow), FRCP (Edinburgh)
As perinatal and paediatric care influences family health and early child development from the national health perspective, continued concern with both perinatal and child health morbidities and mortalities reiterates the importance of maintaining and strengthening the presence of maternal and child health learning opportunities. Mediscan recognized very early that simulation-based training in perinatal ultrasound is essential to impart skills faster and to a larger number of professionals.
Driven by its ethical commitment of sharing and popularising current ultrasound diagnostic practices to promote life-long wellness of people in our community, Mediscan ,instituted a simulation lab and advanced simulation based training in its education department in March 2019.
the department has grown into a large simulation centre with 7 advanced simulators with Haptics for both abdominal and vaginal scans from. These advanced simulators from “Intelligent” Ultrasound Co UK, provide not only an automated self-learning environment but also allows for practice and evaluation. The system provides “intelligent” mentoring and evaluates the candidate with performance metrics. These systems have over 200 modules in various aspects of OBGYN ultrasound with a wide variety of pathologies. To enhance the skills of the operator, we upload our own cases (completely anonymized), done by experts in Mediscan and students learn from these cases.
The simulation centre is also equipped with “Blue Phantoms” for training in invasive procedures. In addition, models have been innovated and developed in house for training in fetoscopy, RFA, Bipolar cord occlusion and foetal shunt procedures. The centre also has simulators for FAST ultrasound and trans oesophageal echocardiography.
The Simulation Centre has become an integral part of the education Department at Mediscan. It is headed by Dr Brintha Jayanthi who has more than 30 years of experience in clinical ultrasound and is ably managed by MS Jayalakshmi Ramesh who has the unique distinction of completing all the 200 modules with full certification.
