In-Situ Simulation Enhances Emergency Preparedness in Pediatric Care Practices

Background It is not uncommon for emergencies to present at primary care offices. As such, it is necessary for those offices to be prepared to handle, at a minimum, the most common types of emergencies. Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of in-situ simulation training in improving emergency preparedness within pediatric primary care settings. Methods Simulation training was provided at 20 primary care offices in Central Florida. The participants were asked to complete a pre-simulation survey that utilized a five-point Likert-type scale to evaluate office preparedness and the confidence of staff members in managing emergency presentations within their settings. Subsequent to the simulation, participants were asked to complete a post-survey to evaluate the effectiveness of the simulation training. Results Primary care office staff members reported an enhanced preparedness in managing emergencies post-simulation training (pre-simulation 2.95 vs. post-simulation 4.02; p-value<0.05). They also reported higher levels of comfort in managing emergency situations after the simulation training (pre-simulation 3.22 vs. post-simulation 4.53; p-value<0.05). Overall, 100% of participants found the simulation to be effective or extremely effective. Conclusions Our data suggests that the simulation training has improved office preparedness in managing emergencies in a pediatric primary care setting. The simulation training has also been shown to improve the comfort level of pediatric primary care office staff in handling emergency situations. This study was limited to pediatric primary care settings in the Central Florida region, and it is unclear if the findings of this study are generalizable to all primary care practices. Further studies are required to explore whether such training can result in practice change and improve outcomes for more patients.