Just as medicine continues to advance, healthcare simulation—and the standards that govern it—are also evolving. It’s important that healthcare organizations keep up, but how do you know when and what parts of your simulation technology should be upgraded?

Video collaboration in the workplace is more the rule than the exception. For example, 55 percent of organizations use Skype For Business—but not every tool out there will be the right fit for your particular needs and business case. Here are some best practices; to help you pick the right video collaboration tool and get the most out of it.

Building out a space for a healthcare simulation center involves much more than just finding a space and the technology to put into it. How will the technology work in the space to optimize workflows? How do you ensure the use of space and technology will be intuitive and user friendly? There are at least 430 simulation centers in the U.S., but only a fraction of those are accredited. One reason for that may be that there are a lot of needs, standards, and best practices that are overlooked, so it’s important to make sure you know what to consider from the planning phase.

Even if skinny jeans are “in,” they may not be the best choice for you if you don’t like the way they look and feel. The same logic goes for choosing video and other collaboration technology—just because everyone else is doing it doesn’t mean it’s necessarily right for your organization. Providing employees with technology-rich meeting and collaboration spaces is important, but the most commonly used video collaboration and conferencing tools might not be what’s best for supporting productivity and user work styles at your organization. Keep reading for some ways to ensure you choose technology that is the right fit for your huddle spaces and conference rooms.

A new hire, a simulation technician for an undergraduate simulation program, attended a manikin vendor’s class on programming scenarios.  She had already been working for many years in various IT roles, so learning the technology used in simulation was an exciting opportunity. The course was attended by over 15 nursing and EMT educators; they were almost salivating at the possibility of one day getting “their own” technician.  These educators had become keenly aware of the demands placed on them in addition to the courses they taught and related responsibilities, and now they were learning a relatively new technology. Before leaving, the simulation technician received several polite invitations to come work for their programs; in the same breath of the invitation was the expression of frustration that they did not have the funds or administrative will to further staff the simulation facility.

There are plenty of times when size matters. A bite-sized candy bar won’t always satisfy a sweet tooth and a small business can’t always compete with larger players in their industry. For healthcare simulation programs, however, even a small team with limited funding can succeed just as well as their bigger counterparts. The key is to follow industry-designated best practices. The International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL) recently released Standards of Best Practice for Simulation. Adhering to the standards of operation in particular can make any size simulation program sustainable, while also increasing the return on the investment made in simulation technology; improving outcomes, and; bringing students, educators, and leaders closer to their goals and objectives.

Nurses are known for how busy they are since patient needs often can’t wait. And the nursing shortage means they need to focus on real patient care without the added responsibility of training students. In fact, a shortage of instructors is a big factor in why nursing schools turned away more than 56,000 qualified applicants in 2017. Fortunately, in many instances, today’s simulation technology can take the place of clinical training in medical facilities.

If you’ve ever had to choose a display option for an office, venue or event, you’ve probably asked yourself this question: Which is better, a flat panel display video wall or a projector video wall? The short answer is, it depends. There are certainly applications where a blended or rear projection video wall might be a better fit. But the longer answer is, while a projector isn’t always a wrong choice, a LCD or direct view LED video wall has plenty of advantages worth considering.