Emergency Medicine Student Society Ireland SimWars 2017
The School of Medicine at University College Dublin recently hosted ‘SimWars’, a medical simulation competition for medical and nursing students in Ireland.
The event was organised by members of the Emergency Medicine Student Society of Ireland (emssi.ie) and saw students work in teams of five to manage a number of simulated medical emergencies. These scenarios were simulated using medical mannequins, actors and digital technologies. Together these provided students with a realistic and immersive learning experience.
The event represented an opportunity for students to test not only their clinical skills, but also their ability to work as a team and perform under pressure. Expert emergency doctors and advanced paramedics provided feedback on their collective and individual performances throughout the day, as well as delivering teaching sessions on topical issues within emergency medicine. Teams were judged on the day by Professor John Ryan, Dr David Menzies, Dr Alan Watts, Dr Lisa Guthrie, Dr David Monks and Dr Eimhear Quinn. Forty students took part in this year’s competition, representing the medical schools of University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, The Royal College of Surgeons, NUI Galway and University College Cork.
After managing both a polytrauma and a peri-arrest simulation that morning, teams from Trinity College Dublin and NUI Galway were put forward as the highest performing teams to participate in the SimWars Grand Final, which took place that afternoon in the Garret Fitzgerald Debating Chamber in UCD. In front of a live audience, both teams performed a tight battle with NUI Galway coming out on top to scoop the SimWars Cup for its first year and taking the competition to the West for 2018.
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| PHECC registered practitioners from Loughlinstown NAS Station, giving a handover to the Trinity College Dublin team as part of the live final |
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Jamie Condren, a final year medical student at UCD, organised the event along with fellow UCD classmate Tiarnán Byrne. He said, “It is really encouraging to see healthcare students around the country training together alongside doctors and pre-hospital practitioners who have given up time to teach them in the evenings after classes and shifts are done. It’s clear that students recognise the real value of simulation training in terms of bridging the gap between theory and clinical practice.”
Dr. David Menzies, consultant in emergency medicine, St. Vincent’s University Hospital and PHECC Council member said of the event, “Simulation education plays a key role in the training of emergency physicians. The SimWars competition represents a unique opportunity for students to consolidate important clinical and interpersonal skills using this immersive style of learning”.
The organising committee wish to thank all those involved in making this year’s competition such a success.
Fiachra Morris of NUI Galway accepting
the SimWars trophy from Dr David Menzies