Providers Get Important Critical Care Training with Simulation Bootcamp

Nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants got firsthand practical experience in critical care areas ranging from chest tube insertion to lumbar puncture during a simulation training that took place from noon to 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 1 at the Marion and Mary Ashley Health Education and Conference Center. 

Trauma surgeons and physicians instructed NPs and PAs on a range of critical care procedures. Five stations were set up and physicians rotated through all of them, performing procedures mainly on manikins. The training was developed by Sara B. Edwards, MD, MS, FACS, Chief of the Division of Acute Care Surgery; Akihiro Sugiyama, MD, Attending Physician for the division; and Patrick Hogue, Executive Director of Advanced Practiced Providers.  

Hogue said such a training is essential to promote the development of Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) by allowing them to practice procedures in a safe, but effective learning environment. The list of procedures that AAPs trained for included chest tube, arterial and central line insertion; Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS); ultrasound-guided IV insertion; paracentesis/thoracentesis and lumbar puncture. 

“I think this is a great opportunity because we get to practice and maintain our skills with A-Lines and Central Lines and lumbar punctures and you name it,” said Ben Juarez, a physician’s assistant. “It’s also a great opportunity to build a rapport with our academic leadership.”  

At the end of the event, both physicians and APPs shared how the bootcamp significantly contributed to their professional growth and gave them a shared confidence in their skills development.