Mercy acquires Pediatric HAL®: the latest and most advanced pediatric simulator
Robotic “5-year-old” capable of simulating lifelike emotions through facial expressions, movement & speech is used for training at Mercy
Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids has acquired Pediatric HAL®, the latest and most advanced pediatric patient simulator. Mercy is among the first hospitals in the Midwest to put HAL to work to help train its nurses, doctors and healthcare students, and improve their pediatric care.
Pediatric HAL, developed by Gaumard Scientific Company, is designed to help healthcare students and professionals at all levels develop the specialized skills needed to effectively communicate with, diagnose and treat young patients throughout the continuum of care.
While a young child may have trouble explaining medical symptoms, a quick look at the simulator’s facial expressions – as well as his verbal and non-verbal cues – can reveal much about anxiety and pain.
Pediatric HAL is the first patient simulator capable of simulating lifelike facial expressions, emotions and moods, including anxiety, anger, amazement, pain and more.
“With Pediatric HAL, our healthcare students and providers can practice handling difficult situations, such as how to diagnose and communicate a serious medical issue to a young child,” said Tracy Wilson, Mercy’s Nurse Residency Program Manager. “We feel fortunate to have this highly advanced patient simulator as another training tool. It will help learners develop a wide range of skills through an interactive patient-provider experience.”
With the recent addition of HAL, Mercy now has five high-fidelity simulators for advanced training purposes. In addition to on-site training at Mercy, Wilson has taken the simulators to nursing fairs at area colleges.
She says learners can perform a full range of emergency procedures on HAL, including surgical airway, needle decompression, and chest tube thoracostomy with a high degree of realism.
Pediatric HAL includes 10 scenarios designed to replicate a variety of clinical situations throughout the spectrum of pediatric care.
To learn more about Pediatric HAL and watch a video, visit https://www.gaumard.com/s2225
