DiaMedical Journal

Every day, life-saving blood transfusions are needed in healthcare facilities across the world. Annually in the United States, more than 14 million units of blood are transfused from nearly 11 million blood donors. Most patients do not experience any side effects from their transfusions, and this is due to the knowledge and skills of the clinicians caring for them. One of the best ways to teach aspiring doctors, nurses and lab technicians how to perform these procedures is simulation training. Participating in structured simulation scenarios not only improves clinical skill performance but enhances confidence in performing critical interventions. SimRx Signature Simulated Blood Bags are an essential component of this training because they look and feel just like real blood products.

In this Tuesday Teaching’s episode, nursing students demonstrate an emergency code blue response with our nurse educator, Sally O'Meara. Click the link below to watch a high intensity, educational mock code simulation! At DiaMedical USA our mission is simple: improve the quality of healthcare by providing innovative tools like our Tuesday Teachings series to help educate the next generation of medical professionals.

Neonatal resuscitation is a high risk, low frequency emergency situation that occurs in approximately 10% of births (1). Preparation and training are essential because the need for advanced resuscitation is often unanticipated prior to delivery. For this reason, simulation training has become a central component of NRP certification and continuing education. The TABCS (temperature, airway, breathing and circulation and supplies) are essential components of all neonatal resuscitations. Continue reading to learn more about how to incorporate these into your neonatal resuscitation training program.

Postpartum Hemorrhage (PPH) is the leading cause of maternal mortality worldwide, and cases are currently on the rise across the globe. However, up to 70% of hemorrhage-related obstetric deaths may be prevented with prompt recognition of excessive blood loss and standardized emergency plans (1,2,3). This blog will explore how OB educators and clinicians can help improve care for mothers who develop postpartum hemorrhage.

When it comes to an emergency at a hospital each type of clinician needs to understand their role. Doctors, nurses, and specialists are flooding patients rooms ensuring they receive the proper care. This is an extremely stressful situation and, unfortunately, even the most veteran hospital employees can get overwhelmed and start making mistakes. Hospitals encourage departments to constantly work to improve their skills through simulation. However, as explained by Michelle Stearns from Vermont Technical College “training happens within specific departments ‘silos’ and prevents collaboration between different departments”. Encouraging this level of collaboration early on in the healthcare education process sets a realistic foundation for our future healthcare professionals.

Nearly three weeks ago, President Trump announced his intention to declare the national opioid crisis a “national emergency.” And for good reason; as we discussed in our previous blog post, opioid overdose deaths continue to skyrocket across the country. Claiming more lives than guns and car accidents, drug overdoses are the leading cause of death for Americans under 50. Alarmingly, in 2015, nearly 1 in 50 deaths were drug-related—and primarily due to opioids.

An increasing demand for Paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians has left the nation in a major employment shortage. This increasing demand has led to thousands of job openings and a limited number of recently graduated students to fill them. An astonishing 15% increase in jobs is expected over the next 7 years, according to the Bureau Of Labor & Statistics, and by 2026 there will be an estimated 37,000 more jobs for EMTs and Paramedics than there were in 2016.

Healthcare education initially started with life-like simulation and transformed in the late 1960’s to synthetic model simulation. Though patient simulations were very realistic, they were not the most efficient and effective ways to test students. Life-like simulation was a risk, more expensive, less flexible, and not worthwhile for teaching institutions. Once manikins and models were introduced to the world of simulation, students were able to practice certain skills and techniques as frequently as they needed in order to correct mistakes and did not run the risk of putting their simulated patients in danger.

The new MIND Diet developed by Rush University Medical Center researchers appears to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's Disease by 53 percent in those that followed the diet rigorously, and by 35 percent in those who followed it moderately.

Years ago, patients who required advanced medical therapies like feeding tubes, IV infusions, and mechanical ventilation were cared for in the hospital or a long term care facility. Today, these patients can stay at home with the support of an interdisciplinary home care team. Not only is their care cost effective, but they enjoy a higher quality of life than their hospitalized peers. The demand for home health care services has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic as inpatient hospital beds have become scarce. Of course, there is a corresponding need for home care clinicians who can provide the advanced care that these patients require. As a result, training programs are adding home care rooms to their sim labs to help students practice outside acute care settings. Continue reading to learn more about why this is important and how to create a home care sim lab of your own.

World Hepatitis Day is recognized every July 28th to remember Dr. Baruch Blumberg (1925–2011), who discovered the hepatitis B virus and developed the first hepatitis B vaccine. This is the perfect time to raise awareness about viral hepatitis, which impacts more than 354 million people worldwide. It is also an opportunity to examine how healthcare providers are at risk of developing hepatitis after a needlestick injury. Continue reading to learn more about hepatitis infection and how safer needle devices can help prevent spread of the disease.

Summertime is here and students are enjoying a break from their studies. Summer is also the ideal time for sim lab coordinators to get their medical equipment ready for the next school year. The common misconception is that maintenance is only required when the issue strikes, but this run-to-fail strategy can present safety risks and increase long-term costs. Preventative maintenance is one of the most important tasks that facilitators should consider, as it keeps equipment safe and ready to use for students and instructors throughout the upcoming school year. There are eight examples of medical equipment that require professional preventative maintenance measures before a years long worth of use, most of which are already in simulation labs.

SimServeRx is an automated medication management system that was designed specifically for healthcare education and training. It provides medication dispensing and administration experiences that are very similar to those used by students in clinical settings. SimServeRx is also designed for instructor convenience with 10 pre-loaded Patient Profiles so the system is ready to use as soon as it arrives on campus. Continue reading to learn more about how these profiles create realistic medication administration experiences for nursing education.

Celebrating Juneteenth by recognizing Black American Medical Pioneers

Pride Month is a time to celebrate diversity, promote dignity and equal rights, and increase visibility for the LGBTQ community. That being said, it's important to openly discuss that people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning (LGBTQ) have importantly unique health needs that must be recognized and addressed by their healthcare providers. Culturally competent care is the key to overcoming LGBTQ health disparities and improving health outcomes for this population. Continue reading to learn more about health risks that are common to the LGBTQ community and how training programs are increasing awareness for providers.

Check your AED: Is it FDA approved?

Check out our latest video featuring the SimLabSolutions Loaded Postpartum Hemorrhage Cart! This product is the ideal solution for training learners about this maternal emergency. The drawers are loaded with all of the supplies and simulated medication recommended for management of postpartum hemorrhage. The pre-loaded cart allows you to have everything you need on hand and ready to use.

Food allergies have increased steadily over recent years, currently approximately 7% of children in the U.S. Approximately 40% of these children have multiple allergies, and they are at higher risk for allergic reactions and anaphylaxis when they are at camp (1,2,3). This is because they have more opportunities to try different foods than at home or school, and the risk of cross-contamination is higher. In addition, campers may experience bug bites, pet dander, insect stings, snake bites, and other allergens. This blog will describe how camps must prepare to deal with anaphylactic reactions that can arise from food and environmental allergies.