Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) Simulation Program is a provider of interprofessional, multimodality simulation centers on the campuses at Abilene, Lubbock, and Odessa. These centers provide simulated, realistic healthcare environments for TTUHSC students and residents and the West Texas Community. Undergraduate and graduate nursing students, medicine and pharmacy students, speech pathologists, physical therapists, and occupational therapists all train regularly at one of TTUHSC Simulation Program centers accredited by SSH.

The three centers are all located in West Texas, with the largest of the locations being in Lubbock and the other two locations in Abilene and Odessa. When asked if it’s challenging to operate three simulation centers in this vastly rural region of Texas, the TTUHSC faculty and staff let out a little chuckle. They are proud of the work they are doing at all of the locations, but the distance between the sites is significant; both the Abilene & Odessa centers are approximately 150 miles away from Lubbock and each other. TTUHSC Simulation Program Executive Director, Sharon Decker, says, “I would say our biggest challenge is making sure that you have uniformity on all the campuses. But not only just the experiences, but also we have to look at the equipment and supplies,” she says. Her colleague, Daniel Backlund echoes her sentiments saying, “Cost, supplies & equipment; those all scale with your [Program’s] growth.”

One system that has made life easier at TTUHSC is the implementation of a scheduling software that was developed in-house. The leadership team says the software has been game-changing, taking them from a system in which there was essentially one point person for each simulation activity who knew all of the details, to a system in which they’re all able to access information for an upcoming event on their cell phones. “As a simulation technician you can check it and see what things need to be turned on in the morning, who’s in different areas, what all stuff you need and it’s really very convenient,” says Director of Simulation Operations, Jarrod Jones.

Faculty members at TTUHSC also feel as though supportive leadership has been essential to the successful operation of its centers. “We’re very, very fortunate that we have administration from the highest level that understands simulation and that understands what simulation can do or assist with the educational process of our students,” states Decker. Meanwhile, her team says she’s the reason they have recognized success throughout the years. “Sharon has been in simulation from Day 1 and she is a true visionary,” says Shelley Burson. “As a result of her being a true visionary, we’re always on the cutting edge of the best techniques, knowing what’s coming up, what’s on the forefront, what are the hot topics, we’re right there, always on that edge because of Sharon and her leadership” Burson continues.

So, what’s on the forefront at TTUHSC? The implementation of electronic health records within simulation-based educational activities. For the past two years, the Program has been collaborating with University Medical Center in Lubbock as well as Cerner to develop a de-identified record system that can be utilized during simulation-based learning activities. The goal is to provide students experience with looking up and recording information in an EHR system before they graduate and start their careers. “We’re hoping to provide that buffer and provide them with a true, real, robust electronic health record system,” says Burson.

As a whole, the dedication the TTUHSC team has to advancing healthcare simulation is clear: about 60% of the TTUHSC staff is credentialed as either an SSH Certified Healthcare Simulation Operations Specialist or a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator. Two of those individuals, Daniel Backlund and Jarrod Jones, maintain both certifications. Sharon Decker currently serves on the SSH Board of Directors and has been a past chair of both the SSH Fellows Academy and SSH Certification Council. Decker and TTUHSC Health Information Manager, Matthew Pierce, also serve as SSH Accreditation Reviewers. TTUHSC Simulation Center Director Melissa Leal serves on the SSH Education Committee and is co-chair of the Educational Content Advisory Team and fellow Simulation Center Director Kathryn Whitcomb is a co-chair of SSH’s Super-Sized Simulation Centers Affinity Group. The enthusiasm among the TTUHSC faculty and staff for improving healthcare through simulation-based education and training helped the Simulation Program achieve SSH Accreditation in Teaching & Education in 2018. The TTUHSC Simulation Program is now setting its sights on adding assessment to its accreditation status when it comes time to reapply.

To learn more about becoming an SSH Accredited Simulation Program, please visit https://www.ssih.org/Credentialing/Accreditation for details on eligibility requirements or contact accreditation@ssih.org.