(L-R) Dr. Gregg Shutts, Dr. Michael Brogan,
and Elizabeth Wright
Daemen College’s new state-of-the-art Center for Interprofessional Learning and Simulation (CILS), which is designed to educate students using real-life clinical experiences and to serve as a regional resource for professional development in the community, has been officially unveiled at a special virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“We are proud to celebrate the official opening of Daemen College’s Center for Interprofessional Learning and Simulation, which will transform the educational experience for hundreds of students in our health and human services programs,” said Daemen President Gary Olson. “This state-of-the-art simulation center is a major step forward in providing Daemen students real-life training in a safe teaching and learning environment.”
Participating in the ribbon-cutting ceremony along with President Olson were John Yurtchuk, chair of the Daemen Board of Trustees; Dr. Michael Brogan, senior vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college; Dr. Gregg Shutts, interim executive director of CILS; and Elizabeth Wright, dean of health and human services.
Located in Daemen’s Research and Information Commons, the 2,400 square-foot center has been created as a replica of a modern health clinic. The facility houses eight modern examination rooms, a counseling room, and a space for telehealth, telecounseling, and face-to-face interprofessional learning experiences.
Students will be immersed in simulated patient scenarios that mimic real life. Actors who are trained to portray patients with particular symptoms and circumstances will bring the clinical cases to life, while the conference room will allow students from different professional programs to work together to interpret patient and client interactions in an interdisciplinary manner. More than 450 Daemen students are expected to use the center every year.
“The center will further Daemen’s reputation as Western New York’s premier health sciences educator,” said Shutts. “CILS will prepare our students to function as highly skilled, caring professionals who excel in their roles as practitioners and as team members.
With the fall semester well underway, CILS is already transforming the educational experience for physician assistant students, who are the first at Daemen to use the facility. Practicing real-life simulations in a safe teaching and learning environment is allowing the students to develop their skills and confidence, while also honing their soft skills, such as effective listening, that will be vital to them as working professionals.