School unveils new technology for nursing students
The College of Saint Mary unveiled new technology for nursing students.
New labs will help teach the kind of lessons that can’t be taught with a textbook, officials said.
“Just with the way health care is changing and patients are more and more complex, we want our students to be more prepared for any type of situation,” said Roxy Kardell, an instructor.
Kardell said she can now offer her students training that is as lifelike as it gets.
“With these new mannequins, students can do IVs on the arms, they can do all sorts of different procedures,” Kardell said.
The mannequins mimic real conditions, such as coughing, high blood pressure or abnormal heart beats.
The labs look like real hospital rooms. While the student treats the "patient," instructors watch from behind a window. The instructors control the patient's symptoms from a computer. Each session is recorded so the students can be critiqued later.
“The mannequin is a lot higher fidelity so we can do a lot more complex things,” said Christie Glesmann, program director.
Glesmann said a piece of the project is dedicated to Dr. Kathy Willrett, who was an instructor at the college for 35 years. Willrett died last year and is remembered for her enthusiasm and passion for nursing.
“All of our students love to come in, and we’re just making better nurses, and I’m excited to be part of that,” Kardell said.
