Physical assessment education using various simulators

Abstract

Pharmacists are in demand not only because of their knowledge of medical therapy but also due to their skills in basic physical assessment and emergency care as medical personnel. Pharmaceutical education has developed using patient simulators in bedside training, seminars in hospital pharmacies, and physical assessment practice at the Kyushu University of Health and Welfare School of Pharmaceutical Sciences. We first explain the outline of the method to con- firm basic vital signs with simulators and then demonstrate some simulations to enable the reproduction of drug misadministration/changes in condition. In addition, we check students’ knowledge of and skill in the advanced objective structured clinical examination through practical examinations to test their technical ability in physical assessment. Furthermore, we conduct case study exercises in which students perform physical assessments and collect basic information on patient background. The Stan, Heart SIM, and Physico simulators are used. As examples of drug misadministration, the reproduction of asystole from fatal arrhythmia after the rapid intravenous injection of potassium preparations and ventricular fibrillation from tachycardia after an overdose of insulin are presented to student pharmacists utilizing the simulators. The simulation of anaphylactic shock and hyperglycemia is also possible as examples of changes in condition. Overall, pharmaceutical simulation education provides pharmacy students and pharmacists with experience in the types of medical treatment performed by various healthcare professionals, leading to explorations of the new roles of pharmacists in team medical care.