A "safe environment" for learning gets bigger and better
Cutting the ribbon at the new SYN:APSE simulation center Feb. 23 were (l-r): Jay Morris, vice president, Education, and executive director, YNHHS Institute for Excellence; Cheryl Mayeran, simulation learning consultant; Anthony Amplo, simulation supervisor, Joy Grabow, simulation center coordinator; Jessica Ray, simulation learning consultant; Gayle Capozzalo, executive vice president, YNHHS; Stephanie Sudikoff, MD, director of Simulation; and Michael Holmes, senior vice president, Operations, YNHH.
On Feb. 23, staff and leaders from throughout Yale New Haven Health System came together for a ribbon-cutting for the newly renovated and expanded SYN:APSE (Simulation at Yale New Haven: Advancing Patient Safety and Education) simulation center.
Sylvan Henry, simulation specialist, checks an infant simulation mannequin in a SYN:APSE room configured for labor and birth training. Behind the mirrored windows is a control room where staff can operate the mannequins and audio-visual equipment.
Previously, SYN:APSE occupied 3,000 square feet at 730 Howard Ave. in New Haven and a section of a patient care floor in the East Pavilion at Yale New Haven Hospital. With the expansion, the Howard Avenue center has grown from 3,000 to 8,000 square feet and no longer occupies the East Pavilion space.
The updated center features five simulation rooms, three classrooms and a skills lab, along with patient-care equipment and high-tech mannequins. The facilities and equipment can be configured to simulate emergency, intensive care, labor and birth, surgery and other clinical scenarios. The center also has advanced audio-visual equipment so simulation exercises can be viewed in real time in SYN:APSE classrooms.
Center staff provide education and training, facility design and testing, environmental and workflow analysis and other services for employees and departments. Services can be provided at the simulation center or in departments and units throughout YNHHS.
The SYN:APSE space looks brand new, but the simulation center has existed for over a decade. It was first proposed in 2005 as a "safe environment" for learning and practice, Gayle Capozzalo, executive vice president and chief strategy officer, YNHHS, said at the ribbon-cutting.
Stephanie Sudikoff, MD, director of Simulation, YNHHS, noted that SYN:APSE's staff has grown from three FTE employees to 10 FTEs, who provided face-to-face education to more than 40,000 YNHHS employees between 2009 and 2016.
"This center is evidence of Yale New Haven Health System's commitment to providing cutting-edge education to employees to ensure our patients receive the safest and most compassionate care," she said.
