Friday, May 20, 2005

Babysim

Filed under: Anesthesiology , Critical Care , Emergency Medicine , Medicine , Pediatrics , Surgery

WJXX ABC-25 reports about a new kind of simulator now deployed at Shands Jacksonville hospital:

Jacksonville Fire Rescue and pediatric emergency personnel are working on an infant. His name is Ryan and he stopped breathing. A bag valve mask is used to help the baby get some air. Soon, it's clear the baby is stabilized; but this isn't a real baby, it's a baby simulator.

Ryan, also known as Babysim, is a new interactive medical simulator. At 21-pounds and 28-inches long, it has the physical characteristics of a three to six-month-old infant...

Babysim acts and reacts just like a real baby. It blinks its eyes, it cries, it has a heart beat, can wet its diaper and can be a boy or girl; but it can also die if someone makes a serious mistake.

Wayne Hodges is the Education Coordinator for Trauma and Flight Services at Shands. "What it does is truly mimic the physiology of an infant and the response of that infant to therapy we give."

Go to WJXX ABC-25 to watch a video about the device.

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