FCCS sim prepares residents for critical care

Published by Frank Ruggiero on

One Black man in navy blue medical scrubs and two Caucasian men in light blue medical scrubs simulating critical care support on a health-care simulation manikin
UAB Clinical Simulation’s Fundamental Critical Care Support simulation offers residents the opportunity to apply their didactic learnings in a realistic, simulated setting.   

Improving patient safety involves all members of the health-care team, meaning effective communication is fundamental. 

In the simulations that take place within the Fundamental Critical Care Support (FCCS) course, residents can apply their didactic learnings in a realistic, simulated setting.  

“My hope is that they’ll learn good communication techniques, how to work as a team and how to recognize critically ill patients quickly to triage and stabilize them,” said John Huidekoper, facilitator and assistant professor in Heersink School of Medicine’s Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine. 

Huidekoper has been facilitating this simulation for the last six years and feels it’s a vital experience for his learners. 

“We’re able to give them some valuable background, so they feel more prepared when they’re performing their ICU rotations,” he said. “If you can simulate scenarios that are very rare, you’ll learn how to handle them.” 

Learners Ben Besasie and Michael Wallace, both post-graduate year one anesthesia residents, seconded Huidekoper’s assessment. Wallace particularly appreciated the debriefing session. 

“I think having the feedback from our attendings and other faculty in our department really makes these simulations,” Wallace said. “It’s the best that they can be in my opinion.” 

Besasie agreed. 

“It’s really helpful to be in an environment where you can practice through high-fidelity, high acuity situations and work on communication and teamwork—and how this can be carried over into real patient care,” Besasie said.  

FCCS is a course developed by the Society for Critical Care Medicine and sponsored by the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine Division of Critical Care and Perioperative Medicine and the Heersink School of Medicine Division of Continuing Medical Education. The FCCS course provides a comprehensive overview of critical care support for non-intensivist clinical providers. The simulations take place in the UAB Clinical Simulation space. 

For more information about FCCS, email course coordinator Tonita Averhart at taverhart@uabmc.edu.

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