ADVANCED LEARNING — Daelynn Cordle, a senior health technologies student at the Jefferson County Joint Vocational School, demonstrated the program’s newest interactive table to bolster hands-on learning opportunities. The Body Interact system includes a variety of basic to advanced scenarios and gives students the ability to practice treating virtual patients with maladies from heart attacks to fractured bones.
— Contributed
BLOOMINGDALE — Students enrolled in the health technologies program at the Jefferson County Joint Vocational School continue to progress in their field, thanks to another new high-tech tool to assist them with their learning. The school has acquired a Body Interact system that trains students through the use of an interactive table. Those in the program use a touchscreen in order to diagnose symptoms and treat basic to advanced illnesses, including fractured bones and heart attacks.
Instructor Tammy Sismondo said she first noticed the unit at an International Health Occupations Students of America Future Health Professionals Conference, and sought to add it to her lab.
The school purchased the interactive table from Portugal-based Body Interact, which has a satellite office in New York City. The system includes a two-year unlimited license for students that can be renewed. Sismondo said it has been well received.
“It’s an amazing program and offers so many learning opportunities in one scenario,” she said. “I plan to use this table a lot for training in EKG and CPR. The students love it and they are learning and having fun at the same time.”
“Because it’s interactive, they have to evaluate and assimilate at the same time,” she continued. “There are a lot of skills that come into play and they need to know vital signs and medications. When they are out in the real world and have to see a patient, they can identify symptoms, connect the dots and intervene appropriately.”
She noted how scenarios can be switched, with students able to add the program to their Chromebooks and cell phones to practice outside of the classroom.
“It’s fun while they are learning and they can repeat scenarios to practice,” Sismondo stated.
The table is the latest addition to the high-tech lab, which includes the Hal 3000 patient simulator, a lifelike mannequin which is able to speak and blink; a surgical table with a scrub sink; and a six-foot Anatomage table that includes a dual touchscreen surface and provides a 3-D view of the human body’s organs and systems. Users can view more than 1,300 clinical cases, view X-rays and virtual autopsies, take quizzes and play games. It also has images of animals to use in the animal science program, and forensics to instruct criminal justice students.
Juniors and seniors are beginning to practice on the system. Several in the class have said they enjoy the hands-on learning.
“I love it,” said junior Kimber Rogers. “I feel like it’s more in-depth and one-on-one with a patient.”
“I feel like it’s very interactive,” added junior Chelsea Channels. “I can learn with the scenarios.”
Meanwhile, Sismondo hopes to add a virtual reality headset to instruct preparations in the operating room for potential surgical technicians and broaden learning opportunities.
“The VR unit would help them learn to scrub and pass instruments in the operating room,” Sismondo commented.
“I have some students who are very interested in becoming surgical tech and West Virginia Northern Community College has an outstanding surgical tech program,” she added.
Sismondo has five seniors working as patient care technicians at Weirton Medical Center, and quite a few graduates have gone on to become nurses, occupational therapists, surgical techs and paramedics. Students have even gone on to become Army flight medics. She said having the latest technology available makes a difference in preparing them for the future.
“I try to provide a wide variety of opportunities so I can address everyone’s needs,” she noted.
The lab has received accolades from state HOSA Director Jim Scott, who complimented the site for its myriad educational offerings.
“He was impressed with our lab,” she concluded. “He said they should use pictures of our lab as a model for the State of Ohio.”