NMCSD Holds First Mock Code Blue Competition

Photo By Todd Hack | Lt. Brad Williams assists Lt. Joe Lagrew, members of the Transitional Intern team, get suction into the mouth of the high-fidelity mannequin patient with cardiac arrhythmia during Naval Medical Center San Diego’s Medical and Surgical Simulation Center first Mock Code Blue Competition. Each team was judged on their proficiency in adult resuscitation and life support, team dynamics, communication, patient etiquette and general knowledge of the equipment.  

SAN DIEGO, CA, UNITED STATES

06.30.2010

Story by Petty Officer 1st Class Todd Hack 

Naval Medical Center San Diego

SAN DIEGO - Six different teams from Naval Medical Center San Diego participated in the first Medical Surgical Simulation Center Mock Code Blue Competition held in San Diego, June 30.

The MSSC Mock Code Blue Competition challenged wards and departments to assemble teams of four to six personnel to participate in the event.

Each team was judged on proficiency in adult resuscitation and life support.

"The competition is an intense drill that gives a real-life scenario to help with training," said Cmdr. Ramona Domen, deputy director for the MSSC and a facilitator and judge for the competition. "We are using the American Heart Association basic guidelines and judging the appropriate interventions the team takes to save the patient, to determine who the winner will be."

The MSSC competition is focused around a high-fidelity human patient mannequin simulator that is surrounded by all of the same personnel and instruments that would be needed in a code blue emergency.

"We give a patient history and then judge them [the teams] on their team dynamics, communication, patient etiquette and general knowledge of the equipment," said Cmdr. Don Raymundo, competition judge and Intensive Care Unit [ICU] critical care nurse. "All of the teams are savvy in terms of stabilizing the patient, but each has taken a different route to that goal."

After each simulation the teams are given a summation report. Feedback from the team leaders and the team are provided during a verbal debrief, which is the normal procedure for an actual code blue scenario.

"The simulators really amp up the reality and everyone goes away with a great learning experience," said Lt. William Cronin, NMCSD graduate medical education intern.

The competing departments included the Emergency Department, ICU, Branch Health Clinic Naval Base San Diego, Transitional Interns, Internal Medicine Clinic and the Cardiology Inpatient Ward. The competition winner was NMCSD's ICU team.

The MSSC opened in December 2008, introducing high-fidelity human patient mannequin simulators, including pediatric, neonatal and birthing simulations for medical training. MSSC also offers virtual reality surgical trainers, endoscopy trainers and a trauma simulation demonstration. MSSC is comprised of eight full mannequins, 10 rooms and more than 30 task simulators. In 2009, approximately 6,000 simulations were conducted in the MSSC with more than 3,800 students utilizing the facility during the academic year.

• Date Taken: 06.30.2010
• Date Posted: 11.03.2010 13:42
• Story ID: 59365
• Location: SAN DIEGO, CA, US