CSDS CENTRAL - WATER RELEASE

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

TRAINING PATHWAYS
COMMUNICATION TUTORIALS
NOW AVAILABLE AS A COURSE
STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 1

CSDS CONTACT INFORMATION

Phone
(07) 3646 6500
Fax
(07) 3646 6501
Email
CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au
Website
www.sdc.qld.edu.au
Street address
Level 4 Block 6
Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital
Herston, Queensland, 4006
Business hours
Monday - Friday: 7:30am - 4:30pm
Saturday and Sunday: Closed
Mailing address
PO Box 470
Herston Queensland, 4029
Australia

Contents
2

Whats new at CSDS?

CSDS tours

External interview
Vic Brazil

This is not a drill

When real emergencies happen during
simulated ones

10

CSDS Central
Water release

11

Training Pathways

12

Visiting Professor Interview

Prof Lambert Schuwirth

15

Celebrating 10 years with CSDS

From a single centre to a multiple site
service

18

Faculty interview
Peter Thomas

22

Pocket Centre profile

24

Communication tutorials now available as

a course

26

Metro North engagement

Strategic planning

26

Simon says

28

Accreditation

Executive address
A/Prof Marcus Watson / Executive Director, CSDS
Time, cost and quality. The three main objectives of most
businesses but also the context of one of the greatest
problems. How do you provide a quality product that is
affordable that can be produced quickly? Common belief
is that you can only ever achieve two out of these three,
however the team at the Clinical Skills Development Service
(CSDS) is continually striving to achieve all three. Not a
small task and not something that is taken lightly.
Whether we are developing a new course around
communication for International Medical Graduates,
providing quality assurance to the delivery of simulation
education across the state or improving a participants
journey as they complete a blended course, we always
question ourselves in relation to can we do this better?
Can we reduce the cost and pass these savings on?, and
how can we shorten the time that it takes for us to do
this? This culture is ingrained in everything that we do
and the clinicians, and therefore the patients, are reaping
the benefits.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 1

THE

NEWS
A BUSY TIME AT CSDS

LOREM IPSUM

Tradeshow
Induction
eLearning
Course

Are you planning a trade display or conference? Why

not contact the Clinical Skills Development Service
(CSDS) to find the perfect venue for you! The Skills
Development Centre (SDC) has been a host venue to
many trade shows and conferences and has recently
developed an eLearning package to help conference
organisers disseminate important information about
the Centre to vendors. The Tradeshow Induction is a
short interactive course designed to make organising
an event at the SDC easy. The Tradeshow Induction
educates clients and their guests about freighting,
storage, setup and manual handling during their
tradeshows and conferences at the centre. If you are
interested in hosting a Tradeshow or conference at
the SDC call +61 7 3646 6500 or email CSDS-Admin@
health.qld.gov.au

WHATS
NEW AT
CSDS?
The beginning of the year
has been a busy time for the
Clinical Skills Development
Service (CSDS) with new
courses and templates, and
a new honorary fellow!

Allied Health
Forum

CSDS had a presence at the Allied Health Forum in

October last year. The Forum was held on the Royal
Brisbane and Womens Hospital (RBWH) campus and
its purpose was to promote education and training
to Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech
Pathologists, Audiologists, Dieticians and Nutritionists,
Social Workers, Psychologists, Radiographers,
Sonographers, Podiatrists and Music Therapists.
Our attendance at this forum was an opportunity
to establish new relationships with healthcare
professionals and future participants as not many
attendees had heard of the CSDS. We also were able
to market our courses such as Cardiorespiratory and
Orthopaedic Physiotherapy (CROP), Tracheostomy and
Speech Pathology (TASP) & Physiotherapy & Critical
Care Management (PaCCMan) to name a few.

CSDS Essentials
Scenario
Templates

QLD Regional
Training
Network
Symposium

Free resources for everyone! CSDS has reviewed

and improved our resources and have recently
launched some Advanced Life Support (ALS) scenario
templates that are freely available and useful
for simulation education training. These medical
education templates/checklists were once only
available to our Pocket Centres but are now available
for anybody to use! Check our website for the next
exciting essential release.

The CSDS was invited to attend the Queenslands

Clinical Education & Training Symposium, held in
November last year, at the Brisbane Convention
and Exhibition Centre. The two-day symposium was
hosted by the Queensland Regional Training Network
and was open to anyone interested in improving the
quality of, or creating opportunities for, the clinical
training of Australias future health professionals. The
Symposium bought together health professionals,
academics, policy developers and health workforce
educators to explore best practice and innovations
in clinical education and training. Two distinguished
keynote speakers; Associate Professor Victoria
Brazil (emergency physician and medical educator,
Emergency Department of the Gold Coast Health
Service and Bond University Faculty of Health Sciences
and Medicine) and Professor Analise ODonovan (Head
of School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University)
drew a variety of attendees from various locations.
CSDS Simulation Educator, Amy Allington, attended
the event to man the CSDS Booth: It was a great
opportunity for CSDS to be present, we particularly
enjoyed networking as well as seeing some familiar
faces from across Queensland. We had a lot of interest
in courses such as Advanced Life Support (ALS) and
simulation provider courses such as Fundamentals
of Debriefing (FDC) and Simulation Education Event
Design (SEED).

Welcoming
our third
fellow to the
Honorary
Fellowship

Registrar Emergency Medicine Dr Cherie Watts, from

Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Hospital was our second
fellow to complete her fellowship at CSDS from August
until December 2015. I was thoroughly impressed
with the professionalism and organisation of CSDS
as a whole - and this is really a composite of lots of
small impressions building up to one really big positive
impression. I dont think I met a single grumpy/
unfriendly person the whole time I was there; there
seems to be a corporate culture of everyone striving
to help in whatever way they can; to my eyes, it
looked like people enjoyed working there, and thus
approached their work with enthusiasm. We had
our third fellow join us in February, Una Harrington,
Emergency Registrar from QEII Hospital. Over the next
six-months, Una will receive professional development
from CSDS and as part of the program, attend all
of the Simulation Provider courses; Introduction to
Simulation Training (IST), Simulation Coordinator
Training (SCT), Fundamentals of Debriefing Course
(FDC), and Simulation Education Event Design (SEED).

Scholarship
success

Dr Shinichiro Sakata has been awarded the prestigious

Foundation for Surgery Research Scholarship (2016) by
the Royal Australian College of Surgeons for his work
on the effects of 2- and 3-dimensional laparoscopic
and robotic technology on the stress and performance
of novice and expert colorectal surgeons. Most of
this research is being conducted using simulationbased methodologies and Clinical Skills Development
Service (CSDS) facilities. Shin is a trainee in general
surgery currently completing a PhD at The University
of Queensland (UQ) in collaboration with researchers
from UQ, The Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital
and the CSDS team.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 3

CSDS tours
Queensland Healths Clinical Skills Development Service
(CSDS) is one of the most technologically advanced and
comprehensive skills development services in the world.

Visitors from within Australia

The Centre has hosted visitors representing the following
national institutions and corporations:

Based at the Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital campus,

the Skills Development Centre covers over 3500m2, with
26 session rooms, laboratories, and even a fully functional
operating theatre and hospital ward.

Queensland
Childrens Health Queensland (formerly the Royal
Childrens Hospital)
The University of Queensland
Queensland University of Technology
Mackay Base Hospital
Logan Hospital
Princess Alexandra Hospital, Woolloongabba
University of Sunshine Coast
Mt Isa Base Hospital
Rutledge AV
Smartship Australia

In line with the Centres keen focus on education, CSDS

regularly receives requests from enquirers to view the
facility and what it has to offer. These requests come from
a diverse range of people including students, nursing staff,
clinicians, industry experts, academics and corporate staff.
The tours are specifically tailored to address the individuals
particular area of interest. This includes, but is not limited
to, general simulation, educational collaborations, technical
collaborations, Centre design, equipment and course
observation. These tours are generally conducted by the
Executive Director, Director, or a senior member of the team.
Since 2012, CSDS has conducted more than 50 tours
for over 500 individuals. Attendees come from a wide
variety of destinations with the greatest proportion being
international delegates.

Interstate
Princess Margaret Hospital, Western Australia
The University of Sydney
The University Centre for Rural Health, NSW Northern
Rivers, Lismore
Rural Health Program, Launceston Tasmania
Health Workforce Australia, Adelaide
La Trobe University, Melbourne
Geelong Hospital
Deakin University, Melbourne
National
Australian Defence Force

International visitors
The Centre has hosted visitors representing the following
international institutions and corporations:
China
Sun Yet-Sen University
Peking University
Nanjing Medical University
Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
Shanghai Sixth Peoples Hospital
Shanghai Eighth Peoples Hospital
Shanghai Tenth Peoples Hospital
Shanghai Longhau Hospital
Shanghai Fengxian Hospital
Department of Health, Anhui Province
Anhui Medical College
Anhui Provincial Friendship Hospital
The First Peoples Hospital of Huainan, Anhui Province
The Second Peoples Hospital of Wuhu, Anhui Province
Japan
Kyoto University
Vietnam
Hai Duong Medical Technical University
Malaysia
KPJ International University College of Nursing and
Health Sciences
Indonesia
Central Java Nursing Academy
Satya Wacana Christian University

Semarang Health Polytechnic

United Kingdom
University of Hertfordshire
Bangor University
Netherlands
Catharina Hopsital, Brabant Medical School
Germany
MTW - Endoskopie
Canada
The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
New Zealand
Awhina, Waitemata Health Campus, Auckland
Finland
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
CSDS would like to make special mention of the following
organisations who have worked collaboratively with the
Centre in the continued pursuit of educational excellence:
Health Projects Officer Enterprise, International and
Engagement, Faculty of Health, QUT
International Affairs Department, Australia-China
Relationship Association
If you would like to see the Centre first hand or you have
an interested group please phone the Centre for more
information on +61 7 3646 6500 or email CSDS-Admin@
health.qld.gov.au
STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 5

Victoria Brazil is an emergency physician and medical

educator who currently works in the Emergency
Department of the Gold Coast Health Service and at Bond
University Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine where
she leads the clinical skills and simulation program.
Victorias main interests include connecting education
with patient care through healthcare simulation,
technology-enabled learning, faculty development
activities, and talking at conferences.
She is a dabbler in the social media and FOAMed world
(@SocraticEM) and is also a keen runner.

What first drew you to emergency medicine?

I loved emergency medicine from an early stage of my
career - simply because of the sheer variety of things
you got to do and patients you looked after. Obviously
theres a heady mix of some excitement and procedural
skills, but I think the more time that I spend in emergency
medicine, thats not what still draws me to it. Rather,
its the stuff of human drama and the privilege it is to
see people at the extremes of emotion, in their times of
greatest need. In fact now one of the things that keeps
me in emergency medicine is helping people die with
dignity, and making good decisions about goals of care
when people arrive in hospital. Not everyone needs or
wants my resuscitation skills.
And of course, ED is a team-based sport and that
camaraderie has been good for me in emergency medicine.

What inspired you to become a medical educator?

I enjoyed education as part of my clinical work when I
was a registrar and subsequently when I was a consultant.
Not just because of the narcissistic personality traits
that it obviously shows up in me J - but rather because
its interesting, its rewarding and usually students and
learners really appreciate what you do. It is gratifying to see
them get so much better at their job, and also to become
the kind of professionals that youre really happy to be
associated with.
6

Of course I think simulation-based training has an

important role in clinical education. I think were only
now just looking at harnessing the opportunities that
simulation offers. I think previously weve actually been a
little bit constrained in our predominant model of a team
around a manikin - whereas simulation encompasses a
really wide range of modalities. It takes good educational
and clinical discipline to think about what methods best
match our training (and sometimes assessment) goals.
I think as technology improves we will have even more
opportunities to use simulation. VR and augmented reality,
and other forms of screen-based simulation will offer very
good recreations of the kind of challenges that we have in
the clinical practice - whether they are knowledge, skills or
behavioural based.

What are the greatest challenges in providing

education to clinicians in the hospital setting?
Obviously one of the greatest challenges in providing
education in-hospital is that clinicians are really busy and
trying to get training time extracted from clinical work can
be a huge challenge. It requires a lot of top-level support,
together with middle-level creativity, and engagement of
the learners. They need to be enthusiastic about doing it
just as we need to be enthusiastic about providing it!
So obviously opportunity and time are critical, but I think
also just getting people used to simulation culture change.
At the Gold Coast University Hospital (GCUH) weve achieved
that in part using a variety of strategies - our trauma
simulations are on the same time every month, its a similar
format each time. So staff are really used to it and then start
to work around it and prepare for it. They know that well
need the space, the team and all those other things.

How important is it to teach clinical staff soft skills

like communication and teamwork, and how can this
best be done?
Firstly, I dont like calling them soft skills because I think
theyre actually pretty hardcore when it comes to patient
outcomes and experience. In any clinical situation, the
communication/teamwork is what will make or break
you. I dont think its so important to teach soft skills as
much as learn soft skills. Hence, the educator has to create
an environment for that learning, rather than tell their
learners. Clearly simulation provides an opportunity for
this, but I think the big advantage with simulation is that it
gives you a time to reflect on those skills and get feedback.
I think if we took the time to reflect on those skills as we
practise them with real cases we would get just as much if
not more out of them. One of the challenges is to enable
teachers/facilitators/mentors to actually make that the
object of their reflection on a clinical experience at work

Vic Brazil

External
interviewVic Brazil

Do you think simulation-based training has an

important role to play in clinical education?

and I would like to see probably more done in using that

opportunity to reflect on the real world communication
and teamwork, as much as on the simulated world
communication and teamwork.

In 2014 you opened smaccGOLD with a powerful

insight into how the conflict between tribes in
clinical environments can adversely impact upon
patient care. Are you optimistic about this tribal
culture improving in the future?
I have to be optimistic about improving tribal culture
otherwise I wouldnt be doing the things I do. I think
healthcare professionals really want to come to work, to
do a good job, and dont want to fight with other people.
However the pressures at work make it hard - competing
priorities, competing world views of the patients journey,
and stress, pressure, fear are all very human things. These
emotions push us into our core tribal identities and we
feel threatened from outside.
There is no magic bullet - But I think we just need to chip
away at this systems changes but also at the coalface help people who are feeling threatened or uncertain or
stressed or busy to think about the ways that we can work
better together. Now I know thats easy to say - but I think
that some of those things I said in that talk are really vital.
Introducing ourselves, saying please and thank you, being

prepared to sit down and take a moment to understand

what the other persons day has been like.
Then moving things up to a more strategic level, making
sure that were doing training, were collaborating, were
connecting at lots of levels other than just in the hot zone
over a sick patient. We need to build the relationships
over time. Simulation can be a part of that. At GCUH we
have targeted our simulation at building collaborations
and building across interfaces and breaking down negative
tribalism, while at the same time applauding the positive
aspects of people feeling an identify with a certain group.
Weve still got a way to go, but weve made some progress.

Your smacc speaker profile reveals that you are

a keen runner. What international running event
would you most like to participate in, and why?
Great question! Obviously Id love to do the Boston
Marathon. I think that would be good because its got so
much history. But Id also like to do one of the big European
marathons perhaps. I understand the Prague Marathon
is very beautiful and so are the London, Paris and Berlin
marathons - although Id be running slowly.
Thanks for the opportunity.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 7

This is
not a
drill:

When real
emergencies
happen during
simulated ones

I work in a simulation centre. Every day we pretend that

medical emergencies are happening and train people
to react in a way that will be safe and beneficial to the
patient. Then we end the scenario and have a discussion
on how it went: what went well, what can be improved.
But what happens when an actual emergency occurs in
this kind of setting?
We recently had an incident where a staff member at
the centre collapsed. One of the team asked a health
professional that works here for assistance. Their first
reaction was to ask, is this real?. It took the concerned
administration officer some time to convince the health
professional that it was a real emergency and not a
simulation. In this case, no harm came to the person as a
result of the delay, but may not always be the case. Another
example might be a fire evacuation. Would your participants
evacuate when the alarms went off or would they be unsure
if it was part of the scenario? Marcus Watson, Executive
Director of CSDS suggested that we implement the use
of No duff; a phrase that has been widely used in other
training organisations such as fire and rescue.

In a real emergency use the term No Duff

& follow emergency procedures.

Non simulated event or injury occurs

Notify all relevant personnel

announce
No Duff No Duff No Duff

The Australian Standard 3745 2010 Planning for

emergencies in facilities has documented an accepted
approach to an emergency that occurs during a simulation.
The standard suggests a pre-determined phrase like No
duff is disseminated to all team members for use if an
actual emergency occurs during a simulation, and that it is
incorporated into the facilities emergency plan. If the staff
hear this instruction recommended to be repeated three
times for clarity they know the simulation is terminated
and they should follow standard emergency procedures.
Where did the phrase No duff come from? One theory
is that it is a variation of the initialism NDF (that stands
for no directional finding), which was used in aviation
training. NDF was a method of using radio signals from
a plane to determine the bearing of the source from the
receiver. Using more than one receiver triangulated the
location of the plane. During training of radio operators,
radio signals were sent just for the purpose of directional
finding. If a real message needed to be sent, the message
was prefaced with No duff so that the receivers would
know the message was real and not for the purposes of
directional finding.
CSDS is now embedding this safe word into the delivery of
simulation-based education and we would suggest you do
the same. So if you visit our Centre and you hear the phrase
No duff, no duff, no duff you will know that this is not a
simulation and there is a real emergency.
Authored by the CSDS Team
8

End simulated event

or activity

Call medical
emergency number

Follow local
emergency procedures

AS 3745 2010 Planning for emergencies in facilities 7.7 AN EMERGENCY DURING AN EMERGENCY RESPONSE EXERCISE
A pre-determined word or phrase, for example, NO DUFF shall be disseminated to all ECO members, for use when an actual emergency
incident takes place during an emergency response exercise. The word or phrase shall signify that the emergency response exercise has been
terminated and that the ECO are to stand by for further instruction.
NOTE : The word or phrase may be repeated in groups of three to over come background noise and other distractions.
T: (07) 3646 6500 | F: (07) 3646 6501
E: CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au
W: www.sdc.qld.edu.au

Metro North
Hospital and Health Service

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 9

The most recent release of CSDS Central Water was

built to manage the equipment repair and maintenance
process. CSDS Central now gives the Simulation Team
the ability to assign repairs to a particular staff member,
depending on availability and skills. CSDS Central provides
notifications and status updates to clients when work
happens, it also integrates quoting into the review process
of the request. Another advantage of this new release is
that all the information is being stored as data, so CSDS will
be able to draw reports that will offer analytical insight into
equipment maintenance trends such as:

equipment dashboard

Keeping your complex simulation equipment running is a

skill that only a few possess, but its something that the
Clinical Skills Development Service (CSDS) specialises in.
CSDS prides itself on its response to the maintenance and
repair needs of the sites that it supports.

equipment usage log

CSDS
Central
Water
release

equipment service frequency efficacy

CSDS Central Water will also revolutionise the way

Pocket Centres provide equipment usage data such as
what is being used where and for how long. Fax machine
technology is older than VHS technology, however, until
recently the fax machine was one of the mediums being
used to send CSDS equipment usage data. CSDS Central now
provides the ability to directly enter usage data into an easy
to follow online form; you can even use your smartphone to
do it! Pocket Centres will also be able to review entries and
view their usage history including total usage hours.
If you need some equipment repaired or would like to learn
about becoming a CSDS Pocket Centre, visit our website:
www.sdc.qld.edu.au, call +61 7 3646 6500 or email CSDSAdmin@health.qld.gov.au

10

repair request item detail

equipment loan and use trends that increase

equipment repair/maintenance.

repair request log

equipment repair/maintenance cost versus equipment

loan price

Training Pathways
In a time when people want greater flexibility, and greater
recognition of their prior learning, training pathways are
becoming more popular. In essence, a training (or learning)
pathway is a route of learning chosen by the learner, which
allows them to build knowledge and proficiency as they go.
The holistic aim of training pathways is to move control of
choice away from the facilitator to the learner, providing
them with greater power of choice of what, how and when
they learn.
Training pathways build on an individuals knowledge
and skill progressively through a number of learning
approaches, such as eLearning, face to face and blended
delivery methods. They break down a larger training gap
into smaller, more manageable components that can be
completed separately. Although some pathways are strictly
structured with each component being a pre-requisite for
the next, others provide a more unstructured group of
components where the participant can transition from one
course to another with minimal to no constraints around
which ones they are to complete next. Some pathways
provide the option for learners to choose elective modules,
allowing for them to cater to their personal learning needs
or specific interest
For clinical staff, there is nothing new about training
pathways; a variety of pathways are offered to achieve
all different specialties. Medical practitioners wishing to
go into general practice can achieve this in a number of
ways, for instance, they can train as a GP registrar through
the Australian Defence Force (ADF), or if they are based in
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and/or
remote and isolated communities throughout Australia, they
can access the Remote Vocational Training Scheme (RVTS).

There are, however, perhaps fewer opportunities to

follow a pathway into a recognised simulation coordinator
qualification, but CSDS provides this to its participants.
The qualification at the end of the path is the Graduate
Certificate in Healthcare Simulation; this is a nationally
recognised qualification under the Australian Qualification
Framework, and provides formal recognition for healthcare
simulation knowledge and skill.
At CSDS, the Simulation Coordinator Training pathway has
a set structure, however, there is flexibility as to how it can
be completed, and we do recognise prior learning.
More broadly, at CSDS, the combination of eLearning, face
to face and blended courses enables our participants to
make their own decisions around learning, allowing them
to align it with their workplace, professional development
and home requirements. For example, clinicians who work
day shifts can complete their learning requirements by
participating in eLearning, or the eLearning component of a
blended course, at night. The face-to-face component or a
separate face-to-face course can then be completed when
time permits.
If youre not sure how a pathway like this will work for you,
dont hesitate to contact us on +61 7 3646 6500.
Into the future, through targeted course development,
CSDS is seeking to make a number of new pathways
available to clinical staff. These pathways will allow
participants to pick and choose what they need to get
where they want to go.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 11

What was your background before you got involved

in clinical education?
I studied medicine at Maastricht University and practised
medicine for a short while, first as a senior house officer in
psycho-geriatrics, and then part-time as a house officer in a
pain centre.

How long have you been conducting research in

clinical education, and what drew you to it?

Prof Lambert Schuwirth

I started my career in medical education in 1991 at

Maastricht University as an Assistant Professor (Lecturer)
and worked there continuously until 2011 when I took up a
position at Flinders University; so that makes it roughly 25
years of research in medical education. I did not know what
to do after graduation and I thought medical education
would be a good starting point to see what I really wanted,
only to find out that medical education was what I really
wanted. So, opportunism is what drew me into it but there
are many reasons that keep me in it. The most important
reason is perhaps the many nice people in the field, who
are happy to share knowledge and collaborate and, second,
the breadth of the discipline. There are so many different
aspects to this field and it is so diverse that I am never
bored and always have the feeling that there is so much
more to learn.

Visiting
Professor
Interview:
Prof Lambert
Schuwirth
Prof Lambert Schuwirth MD PhD is Strategic Professor
in Medical Education at Flinders University. He is an
internationally renowned expert on the assessment
of clinical competence and performance in both
undergraduate and postgraduate settings. Register
now to attend Prof Schuwirths upcoming CSDS Visiting
Professor Workshop.

12

What are your main research interests?

How people learn and develop expertise. What is it that
makes a person become an expert, and how does this work
from a cognitive perspective? That sounds simple but you
have to be a research omnivore to study this, as it requires
both qualitative and quantitative research approaches,
both logical positivist and social constructivist views on
knowledge, and both medical and educational knowledge.
On the one hand, I am involved in a series of qualitative
studies seeking to understand cultural determinants of
clinical reasoning and, on the other hand, we are exploring
the role of the prefrontal cortex and brain activation in
clinical reasoning and fatigue using fMRI studies. I just love
this very challenging breadth of the field.

What are some key conclusions from your past research?

Hmm That is a difficult one because I think there are
so many, and the ones I found key five years ago seem
so obvious now. I think the main conclusion of my past
research is that it is incredibly important to make the
student play an active role in their own assessment.
We only have control over students learning until they
graduate but in fact, we carry responsibility for their
learning and practice far beyond that. Society does not
pay us to provide childcare but to educate people who will
go on to be safe independent practitioners even when we
cannot reach them anymore. That is a huge challenge and

we think we have ways to better ensure this, but traditional

views on education and assessment are so deeply rooted
that it is difficult to move forwards.

What is assessment for learning and how does it work?

Assessment for learning is an approach that is based on
the view that students can and will take responsibility and
self-accountability for the quality of their own learning
and their own assessment if they are taught how and
gradually allowed to. The basis is simply that students are
given information about their progress, their strengths,
and their weaknesses, on a continuous basis but that they
have to make sense of this information and act on it. This
sense making (reflections or analyses whatever you like
to call them) has to be discussed with a coach and this is
a process that has to have teeth. It is not unlike what a
sports coach or musical coach does: it is not about being
nice, it is not about spoon-feeding, it is all about continuous
self- and peer-analysis and working very hard to improve
yourself day after day. Some would contend that this is a
very resource intensive assessment system, which is true,
but the costs of attrition, study delays and graduating
incompetent or unprofessional doctors are much higher
yet less explicit.

Can you give an example of a strong but wrong

belief that people have about assessment?
The first one that comes to mind is the belief that openended questions are better than multiple-choice questions
for testing clinical reasoning. It does not really make a
difference at that level. The content of the question
what you ask is much more important than the format.
The second one is that the validity of workplace-based
assessment resides in the forms used and thus we should
tinker around with the forms (such as the mini-CEX). The
(assessment) expertise of the user is far more important;
an expert examiner could use a blank sheet of paper. So the
form should support the expertise and not try to replace it.
As you can see, I am not a huge fan of detailed checklists.
The final one I want to mention, and probably the most
deeply rooted one, is that you have to use assessment as
the stick to make students learn instead of using it as the
carrot that makes students want to learn.

Do you think that simulation is a useful tool for

assessment in clinical education?
With extreme limitations!!! If the focus of simulations
in assessment is to mimic the clinical consultation,
so on fidelity rather than on validity, the likelihood of
failure is huge. Swanson, Norcini and Grosso wrote a
wonderful overview paper about this in 1987. This is
further supported by research in cognitive psychology.
So higher fidelity does not mean better validity, and

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 13

Workshop Details and Registration

If dyscompetence were a disease, what would your diagnostic work-up look like? Programmatic assessment.
Format: Interactive lecture and extended discussion
Date: Thursday, May 5, 2016
Time: 11 am 1 pm
Location: CSDS Conference Room 2, Level 5, Block 6, Royal Brisbane & Womens Hospital
Cost: Free for employees of Queensland Health and partner organisations
Registration: https://www.sdc.qld.edu.au/courses/263
Enquiries: CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au or +61 7 3646 6500
Dial-in:
If you are unable to attend in person,
dial-in and videoconferencing options
will be available. Please register and
then email CSDS-Admin@health.qld.
gov.au to arrange.

often the opposite. When used in the right way, however,

simulations can be very useful to bridge the gap between
the theoretical, supervised learning environment and the
authentic unsupervised practice environment, for example
by focusing on an increase of so-called extraneous load.

What tips would you give to clinical educators who

want to improve the quality of their assessments?
The three most important tips I have are: peer review, peer
review and peer review; have your items critiqued by peers.
Involve people who may not be from your discipline but who
have expertise in assessment construction and education.

Does your work also apply to training in professional

fields outside of healthcare?
Yes, our research centre collaborates with researchers
in general education, law, and science and technology
education. Of course, disciplines differ and some aspects of
healthcare education translate well to other domains and
some simply dont. But it is a reciprocal process, and some
elements of other disciplines translate well to our domain
(like music education and sports), and others do only to a
minor degree.

14

What are your hopes for the future of clinical

training and assessment?
Collaboration, not only between medical educators
from various centres around the world but also between
disciplines; between clinicians and medical educators. I
have always found that collaboration enriches, and an
us and them attitude is very unhelpful. We can assume
that if intelligent people decide to spend their career on
something and find it worthwhile, then there might be
something to it, and it might be worth taking it seriously.

Celebrating
10 years
with CSDS
The Clinical Skills Development Service (CSDS) has been
delivering education to Queensland Health staff and
external healthcare providers for over 10 years. Opening
its doors in 2004, at the Royal Brisbane and Womens
Hospital, the Skills Development Centre (SDC) was the
largest of its kind in the world, with considerable simulation
and audiovisual capacity. With the success of a range
of simulation courses and high demand for courses and
simulation, the focus of CSDS quickly changed from the
concept of a single site providing the simulation training
for all of Queensland Health, to CSDS providing a service;
supporting the development of simulation capacity across
the state.

From a single centre to a

multiple site service
CSDS is proud to announce that there are 62 established
Pocket Simulation and Skills Centres (Pocket Centres)
and an additional 11 under development. Pocket Centres
originated from the need for a standardised model for
delivering simulation-based training across Queensland,
through the Distributed Statewide Simulation Delivery
Model. This initiative aims to improve patient outcomes by
supplying the clinical workforce with high-quality, readily
accessible, simulation-based education. In each edition of
the STaR magazine, we have included a profile of a Pocket
Centre turn to page 22 to learn more about our Pocket
Centre in Cairns or alternatively, head to our website to see
the entire list.

Staff recollections of
CSDSs early days
When the centre opened, there were 14 staff on
board. Fast forward to 2016 and there is currently
forty-two staff. In this edition, we hear from some of
the employees who have been here with CSDS since
the early years

Joshua Harvey, Database Coordinator

What are the best things about your job?
As lead developer for our Systems Team, the best part
about my job is that its always evolving and never
feels repetitive. I work with a team of people who all
love to keep up with the latest technical advancements
in our field, and the working environment at CSDS
strongly encourages our pursuit of this. If a new
technology allows us to improve something we offer,
we have the freedom to explore and adopt innovative
ideas and practices. The demand of our clients grows
and evolves, and were pushed to as well. I feel that
Ive learned a lot from working here. For all of these
reasons, I find CSDS a rewarding place to work.

Whats one of your earliest memories of CSDS?

Being with CSDS for as long as I have, Ive witnessed
the astounding growth of our online presence over
the years. Our online services are built in-house by a
team of talented, driven people, and we started very
small. I think back to the first 5, 10, 100 people using
our services - a number that is now in the tens of
thousands - and I feel rewarded to have watched our
products grow from the very beginning into what they
are today.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 15

The history of EMAC

One of the first courses CSDS delivered at SDC was the
Effective Management of Anaesthetic Crisis (EMAC) course.
This three-day course focuses on effective teamwork
during an anaesthetic crisis. When it was delivered for the
first time, the course attracted many key EMAC instructors
who assessed CSDSs capacity to run such a course. CSDS
passed with flying colours and the course impressed
many instructors. Since then, CSDS has run 46 EMAC
courses with over 550 participants. CSDS are increasing
the number of EMAC courses scheduled each year due to
increased demand.

Jodie Hosking-Moeroa, Administration

Manager
What is your favourite CSDS memory?
How do I pick just one? There are so many from over
the years. One that comes to mind as most recent
would have to be the 10-year celebration in September
2014, the way the CSDS Team pulled together to
celebrate all of the achievements over the years and
showcase the quality of our products in one day was
truly remarkable.

What are the best things about your job?

The team that brought the first EMAC Course to CSDS! Back Row: Dr Ken Wishaw, Michael Wren, Daniel Host, Dr Norris Green, Dr Robert
Gray, Dr Richard Morris. Front Row: Andrea Thompson, Dr Gabriel Marfan, Dr Kersi Taraporewalla, Dr Marisa Zavattaro, Dr Cathy Brooksbank

CSDS thanks its Faculty

I really enjoy the variety of areas that I am involved in

for the centre and being able to work with a diverse
group of people not only within the centre but
throughout the State.

Faculty play an important part in educating our

participants with the transfer of their skills and knowledge.
CSDS would like to express their sincere thanks to all
faculty, past and present, for taking time out of their
normal employment to educate and ensure participants
are fully equipped to leave our centre and practise what
they have learnt, in the real world.

CSDS continues to grow

Since 2005, CSDS has enjoyed almost a one hundred
percent increase in the amount of courses available to
participants. Offering a variety of courses such as face-toface, eLearning and blended courses, participants have
many options to suit their individual needs.
CSDS will continue to strive for its vision to be an
international leader in clinical skills development to support
better patient outcomes for Queensland for many more
years to come!

Richard Campbell, eLearning Developer

Whats one of your earliest memories of CSDS?
I can remember hearing about CSDS (nee SDC) in 2004
from Dave Harvey their new Multi-Media person and
wanting to be part of it. I can remember eating in the
staff cafeteria before the building was converted for
CSDS use.

How would you describe your time at CSDS?

Dynamic change and innovation under a deceptive
veneer of constancy. A consistently great place to work
with rolling constant change.
Images from the CSDS 10 year celebration.

16

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 17

Peter Thomas

Faculty interview
Peter Thomas

Peter Thomas has been a Physiotherapist at the

Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital for 19 years.
He is a Specialist Cardiorespiratory Physiotherapist /
Fellow of the Australian College of Physiotherapists
and currently is the Physiotherapy Consultant and
Team Leader for Critical Care and Surgery. Peter
completed his PhD in 2007 and also received a
CSDS Vocational Graduate Certificate in Healthcare
Simulation in 2014.
The simulation-based physiotherapy courses
that Peter developed through CSDS have been
delivered widely across the state and also into
New South Wales. He has also authored several
eLearning packages that are accessed by medical,
nursing and allied health staff and students on
topics that include oxygen therapy, chest x-ray
interpretation and airway suctioning.

You have been involved in curriculum development

for a number of years. How have you seen
education change in this time, and has this change
been positive?
While the fundamentals of teaching have changed little,
I have seen education change particularly in its use of
technology and the growth in simulation education.
Technology has impacted on the way education is delivered
in many ways. Capturing media like high resolution videos,
images or sound bites can now be so easily done and then
incorporated into curriculum. This can make it remarkably
easier for educators to demonstrate clinical scenarios and
skills or provide feedback on performance. Online learning
continues to grow and allows students to access large
components of their curriculum, attend live or pre-recorded
lectures and participate in tutorials from anywhere,
anytime. The growth in simulation-based education has
also been great to see, particularly as it expands across
professions and disciplines of practice.
While technology is fantastic to utilise, it can sometimes be
overused and actually distract the learner. Therefore, it is
crucial for educators to remember the basics and consider
how it will improve the delivery of their education and/or
ensure it is directly contributing to the learning objectives.

What drew you to physiotherapy over other

healthcare professions?
Initially, it was my interest in sport which swayed my
18

preference towards physiotherapy. However, during clinical

placements at university, I really enjoyed the placements
in acute and sub-acute hospitals and rehabilitation
services. In many areas of physiotherapy, you are able to
assist people during significant challenges in their health.
Physical activity is one of the best medicines available
and to see a patients physical ability be restored with
the assistance of your interventions is quite rewarding.
Physiotherapists tend to spend a longer period of
time face-to-face with their patients than many other
healthcare professions. This gives us an ability to really
learn about our patients and their families, to understand
their needs and be an advocate for them as they move
through our hospital and healthcare systems.

You have an extensive background in research,

focused on topics such as cardiorespiratory
physiotherapy and intensive care physiotherapy. Can
you tell us about your current research activity?
Finding time for research is often difficult, but like
education it is such an important part of clinical practice.
My main areas of research are in ICU, looking at techniques
physiotherapists use for airway clearance, positioning and
mobilisation. Id also like to do more research in trauma
rehabilitation and education. Im fortunate to be part of
several research collaborations at present. Recently we
completed a Delphi survey in Australia and New Zealand
looking at minimum education and training requirements

for intensive care physiotherapists, with a framework

developed that can guide both entry-level and postgraduate
education. I am also part of a team led by Professor Fiona
Coyer looking at the effect of positioning practices on skin
perfusion, which may direct future recommendations aimed
at preventing pressure injury in patients.

How important is simulated-based education in the

training of physiotherapists?
When I first became involved with CSDS in 2006, there was
very little use of simulation within physiotherapy, other
than basic role-play. Simulation-based education is however
well suited to several disciplines in physiotherapy. Our
profession has now had some great leaders emerge and
embrace simulation-based education in both university
based entry-level programs and post-graduate education.
Simulation is now utilised across musculoskeletal,
neuro-rehabilitation, paediatric and cardiorespiratory
areas of practice. Weve even seen the successful
use of standardised patients during recruitment of
physiotherapists to advanced practice positions.
In entry-level programs, a great deal of the growth in
simulation-based education has been fostered through
collaborative research between Australian universities.
This has then led to further funding and programs through
Health Workforce Australia. CSDS has certainly supported
this growth too, particularly in hospitals that have adopted
the Pocket Model and funded a simulation coordinator.
STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 19

Pocket Accreditaon
Progress Index
Peter Thomas

(API)

This has allowed physiotherapists to develop resources and

access the equipment and support they need to develop
training in their own hospitals.
For physiotherapy, simulation-based education is
particularly important for preparing students for their
clinical practice. It helps students bring together their
theory with skills in assessment and treatment and develop
their clinical reasoning. They are exposed to a variety of
clinical environments and gain valuable insights into the
communication and patient-handling requirements they
need. Physiotherapists from the Lady Cilento Childrens
Hospital deliver an excellent program to university students
to enhance exposure to paediatric physiotherapy, due to
the limited clinical placements available in this area.

Ive been fortunate to have extended secondments in these

positions, and theyve certainly helped me to examine
and expand my leadership skills. Leaders have integrity,
optimism, great communication skills and project a
vision for the organisation. In doing this, they can inspire
individuals and teams to work together and creatively.

The Clinical Skills development Service (CSDS) currently

delivers a comprehensive Pocket Accreditation Program,
which aims to provide a quality recognised benchmark
for simulation education providers. This program was
funded by the Health Workforce Australia (HWA) Simulated
Learning Environments Project.

Whether it be due to nature or nurture, some people are

natural leaders. However, there certainly are many aspects
of leadership that can be taught and with practice and selfreflection people can significantly change their leadership
skills in a positive way. A good leader recognises that we all
have different qualities, reflects on their own strengths and
weaknesses and builds a team that complements each other.

CSDS has recently reviewed this compliance-based

program to determine if it continues to meet the necessary
requirements or if it should be amended. As a result, it
has been identified that, although the program met the
HWA requirements, it no longer meets the requirements of
existing and potential Pocket Centres, or that of CSDS.

Through the courses I deliver at CSDS, I believe we make a

real difference to an individuals knowledge and skills, but
also on the bigger picture weve been able to provide a
framework for education in cardiorespiratory and intensive
care physiotherapy that supports and binds hospitals
across the state (and gradually extending into other parts
of Australia). Seeing the curriculum being taken up and
utilised across Queensland has been very rewarding.

And finally, how do you spend your spare time?

You have performed a number of leadership roles,

such as Deputy Director Physiotherapy RBWH and
Director of Services, here at CSDS. In your opinion,
what qualities make an effective leader, and can
leadership be taught?

Im still searching for my sporting gift but I like to think

Im a better than average tennis player. Across a week I
also try to maintain a mixture of running, cycling and more
recently swimming too.

20

We have a beagle named Ruby who is about eight months

old, so I spend a lot of my spare time repairing damage to
our house, yard and outdoor furniture. She seems to have
a heightened sense of duty to protect the neighbourhood
from cats so we often disagree at night about whether
she can bark constantly at shadows in the cul-de-sac. My
three kids keep me pretty occupied too, so we are often
going to netball, swimming, tennis, cricket or dancing.

To meet requirements, CSDS is currently designing a Pocket

Accreditation Progress Index (API), which will set a number
of readily achievable and weighted standards. Linked to
a Progress Index, the Pocket Accreditation Program will
provide a holistic measure of Pocket Centre performance
and progress; it will also help to drive real and sustainable
growth. Requirements that are seen as easily achievable
will have a low weighting and requirements that are

not easily achievable will be given a greater weighting.

The ratings of each of these will then be added and the
accreditation level will be determined.
This API framework will have a tiered structure with Pocket
Centres achieving the first tier upon being awarded Pocket
Centre status. The increasing tiers will relate to other
attributes around their education delivery or attributes that
exist in the first tier that may be more advanced. The first
tier will map directly to the requirements that exist within
a Pocket Centre application and will link to what is actually
occurring in Pocket Centres in relation to administration,
governance, staffing and education delivered.
As a Pocket Centres maturity progresses in their delivery of
education or embedding simulation into their organisation,
they will be able to apply for increased tier levels.
CSDS has continued to have a governance structure with
dedicated employees implementing and maintaining this
API and is planning a 2016 rollout.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 21

Pocket Centre
profile
The Cairns Skills Centre (CSC) - Our story
The Cairns Hospital Skills Centre is one of the original
nine affiliate Skills Centres that was rolled out by the
Skills Development Centre (SDC), now the Clinical Skills
Development Service (CSDS), in 2006. An inventory of
simulation equipment was delivered to Cairns Hospital
and was housed in a 75m2 space in Block B, which was an
empty space at that stage (formerly occupational therapy).
I was working as an Emergency Department Nurse
Educator at the time and developed an interest in clinical
simulation after attending an Emergency Crisis Resource
Management (ECRM) course at SDC. This interest
motivated me to develop the vacant space into a scenario
room, control room and debrief room using an original
portable audiovisual (AV) system and resources provided
by the CSDS.
During 2006/2007 support from CSDS, clinicians, educators
and our executive crystallised. In May 2008, the Cairns
Skills Centre (CSC) was established when I was appointed
as Nurse Educator/Nurse Manager and an Administration
Support Officer (Deidre White) was also appointed. Having
administration officer support is vital and has been a key
factor in the success of this centre.
Six months later a permanent Simulation Coordinator (Emy
Dezen) joined the crew. This position was initially funded
and managed by CSDS then in 2010 it transferred to the
Cairns Skills Centre, and came under my management. In
this same year, CSDS introduced a Pocket Simulation Centre
(PSC) distributive model. From 2011 until the end of 2013
the Cairns and Hinterland Health and Hospital Service
(CHHHS)/James Cook University Queensland Health, Health
Workforce Australia-Simulated Learning Environments
Project provided a temporary boost of simulation
coordinator staffing and extra simulation assets.
The CHHHS purchased a vehicle in 2013 for our centre to
provide outreach simulation activities across our HHS. So far

Image 1: (left to right) Denis Hudson (Simulation Educator & Centre

Manager), Emy Dezen (Simulation Coordinator), & Deidre White
(Admin Officer).
Image 2: (left to right) Katrina Reuben RN, Jessica Cooper RN, Kim
Dunn (Paediatric Educator), Shin Yat Fok RN, & Ruth Armitage RN.
Image 3: Emy Dezen making up blood packs.
Image 4: Denis Hudson with the new AV console.

22

we have clocked up 8,000kms around the CHHHS. This vehicle

is custom fitted to make moving and setting up simulation
much easier and more accessible for rural clinicians.
In September 2015 after several years of working in our
confined area, we moved into our current larger Skills
Centre in A Block. On reflection, we are still amazed as
to how we managed in our old area. We were masters at
storing, packing, unpacking, setting up and taking down.
We had to problem-solve every day to succeed in providing
quality simulations. We have an amazing toolkit and we
have hoarded many bits and pieces.
The new Skills Centre, which occupies about 280m2,
commands arguably the best views of any simulation centre
in the world. It has three scenario, control and debrief
rooms; one large utility/clean up room, a storeroom, and
office space for staff. There are also other rooms that are
shared with the Nurse Education and Research Unit.
A high definition AV system was purchased from CSDS and
installed in October 2015. This system provides crystal clear
vision and sound that can be streamed to any of our debrief
rooms. The centre is so big that we need cordless phones
to speak with each other. A far cry from when we could just
speak out loud to communicate.
We like the fact that we dont have to set up and take
down as much and that we can have a room set up for
specific skills/task training during courses. We have
dedicated one scenario room for paediatrics/neonatal and
another for adults.
We have been through the process of growing from humble
beginnings to our new centre. It has been a long road but it
has also been rewarding. One of the main strengths of this
centre is our combined experience. We can offer quality
simulation activities to clinicians and educators to enhance
skills and practice in the workforce.
Our biggest challenge now and in the future is staffing
which includes the permanent centre staff and the everchanging pool of faculty for various activities. A larger
centre is great but to achieve full potential adequate
human resources are necessary.
This feedback from a rural medical officer is an example of
some of the great feedback we receive:

Currently, we provide support for a wide variety

of activities for educators and facilitators from all
disciplines. Participants are both undergraduates on
placement and the existing clinical workforce see
below:Outreach Sim Training Sessions:Cairns Community Health Centres, Atherton; Babinda;
Innisfail; Mareeba; Mossman; Tully; Yarrabah.
In the Skills Centre:Advanced Rural Clinical Skills (ARCS) course for medical
officers pre-rural rotation; AED Instructor Training;
Airway Management ; Advanced Life Support (ALS)
CHHHS Course; ALS Scenarios; CPR (BLS) Instructor
Course; CPR (BLS) Training and/or Assessment;
Emergency Medicine Education and Training - Trauma
Management; Critical Resus Updates; Paediatrics Resus
Update; Recovery Room Scenario Training; Nursing Staff
Skills and Scenarios (Includes Critical Care, Emergency
Department, Novice RN, Perioperative, Orthopaedics,
Medical, Respiratory and Renal); Haemodialysis (Renal)
Emergency Scenarios; Harvey Cardiology Heart Sounds
Simulator; Intensive Care Unit Scenario Training;
Intern Orientation Ward Call Scenarios; Intraosseous
Access Skills Training; Fourth Year Medical Student
Cannulation and Phlebotomy; Fourth Year Medical
Student Critical Care Airway Management and
Resuscitation; Sixth Year Medical Student Scenarios;
6th Yr Med Student Suturing Skills; Lumbar Puncture
Skills; Manikin VOCs; Medical Registrars and Regional
Medical Officers Scenarios; Medical Emergency
and Resuscitation Course; Neonatal Resuscitation;
Paediatric Resuscitation Scenarios (Medical students);
Paediatic Resuscitation Scenarios (Medical officers);
Phlebotomy and Blood taking Skills; Physiotherapy
Hyperinflation manual ventilation Skills; Practical
obstetric multi-professional training (PROMPT) Course;
Resuscitation Refresher Medical Officers; Simulated
Learning Initiative in Paediatric Allied Health (SLIPAH);
Simulation Training on Resuscitation for Kids (SToRK)
Recognition and management of the deteriorating
paediatric patient (RMDPP) Advanced; Suctioning
Skills Oropharyngeal; Suctioning Skills Tracheostomy;
Fundamental Laparoscopic Skills.

I had an adult patient in front of me with severe asthma

who was fatiguing rapidly I had been through this before
in the scenario room so I knew what to do and was able to
avoid intubation - it went well.
This kind of feedback makes us smile.
Author: Denis Hudson, Simulation Centre Coordinator
STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 23

Communication tutorials
now available as a course

The Clinical Skills Development Service (CSDS) provides

information, programs and support to international medical
graduates doctors (IMGs) who are employed by Hospital
and Health Services (HHS) in Queensland.
CSDS Simulation Educators have been delivering a number
of communication tutorials, consistent with the Australian
Medical Council (AMC) clinical examination format, to IMGs
on a weekly basis since the function was transitioned from
the Office of the Principal Medical Officer in January 2015.
These communication tutorials provide the opportunity
for those IMGs with an upcoming AMC clinical
examination place to hone their communication, cultural
and professional skills in the examination format. The
framework of the tutorials allows the provision of
immediate performance feedback, which enables doctors
to remediate English language and communication skills,
interpersonal skills, cultural awareness and professional
behaviours for the Australian healthcare context.

24

To assimilate this function into CSDS and to achieve

efficiency and build sustainability a different business
model needed to be implemented. The tutorials are
now delivered either face-to-face at CSDS or via video
conference between 10am -12pm and 1-3pm, every
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. These tutorials are
classified as a course; to book into these tutorials, go to the
CSDS website or follow the link: https://www.sdc.qld.edu.
au/ or call +61 7 3646 6500.
In the future, these communication tutorials will be
transitioned into a blended course (combination of
eLearning and face-to-face training) to align with the CSDS
training delivery model.
For further information on how the CSDS can assist you
please email CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 25

Metro North
engagement
Strategic
planning
Simon says
The Clinical Skills Development Service (CSDS) recently held
two workshops dedicated to the development of the CSDS
Strategic Plan. An external consultancy group facilitated
these workshops with input from key stakeholders around
the State.
The first half-day workshop held on the 28 January,
was targeted at the CSDS Management Team with the
deliberate outcomes of addressing internal capabilities,
analysing external trends, identifying future focuses and
success markers, and then consolidating this with getting
into motion.
The second half-day workshop held on the 10 February
was targeted at key stakeholders, educational facilities,
Department of Health organisations and Hospital and
Health Services. This workshop, held at CSDS, hosted 25
attendees from around the State. The group discussed
existing strengths, future opportunities, future technologies
and key insights grouped into the themes of Discover,
Dream, Design and Deliver.
Both of these workshops involved healthy discussions
around the CSDS products, services and future. The final
report for the strategic plan has been provided to the
CSDS Executive Director for review and discussion with
the Management Team. This report will be published on
the CSDS website in the coming weeks and we welcome
you to read this document and see where we are going in
the future.

Im interested in the Graduate Certificate in

Healthcare Simulation; can you tell me a bit more
about the course?
Certainly, the course is aimed at healthcare professionals
who are seeking further development or recognition of
their expertise in healthcare simulation and was developed
as a hands on competency-based qualification that
provides the nuts and bolts of designing, developing and
managing simulation-based education in healthcare.
It is a nationally recognised Level 8 qualification under the
Australian Qualification Framework and is delivered under
an auspice agreement with the Cunningham Centre. The
course is designed to run over a six month period, however;
it must be completed within two years.
For further information please feel free to call us on
+61 7 3646 6500 or visit www.sdc.qld.edu.au

The battery in my 3G manikin keeps overheating, is

there anything I can do to prevent this from happening?

Can I insert an intraosseous (IO) needle into a

Megacode kid or SimJunior?

Overheating occur when your 3G manikin has been used

for a prolonged period of time or if youre using the
manikin while its plugged into mains power.

Absolutely, just look for a drainage plug on the heel and if

there is one, you can put in an IO. Just remember to drain
fluid from the leg after your simulation.

Here at CSDS we try to alleviate this issue by:

Ive been struggling to remove the moulage from

our manikins. Is there anything that assists in
removing moulage, which is also safe to use on the
manikins skin?

1. ensuring that we are running our 3G manikin

off battery power until the battery becomes low
(however remember that 3G will shut down if the
battery temperature rises above 60 degrees Celsius or
if the remaining charge falls below 6% on one of the
two batteries)
2. removing the skin to help cool down the batteries in
between scenarios
3. removing the batteries and running 3G on mains power.

26

Hi everyone,
thanks for the
questions youve sent,
Im going to answer
some...

Remember these tips when using moulage:

Less is more.
The sooner you remove it, the easier it will come off.
However, for more stubborn moulage, we use citrus-based
cleaners, followed by a sprinkle of baby powder to keep the
manikins skin in good condition.

My ALS manikin needs to be sent back for repairs,

however, I have simulation events booked in a few
weeks time. How long will it take for me to receive a
replacement?
You should generally allow up to a week for freight, however,
this can take longer for some rural and remote areas.
Providing an ALS manikin is available, we will send you out
a replacement prior to you returning your own. This helps
ensure there are no gaps in your simulation education events.
Remember if you have any questions or concerns
regarding simulation equipment, you can ring CSDS on
+61 7 3646 6500.
If youve got a question youd like to ask me, please
email CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au. I look forward to
answering them in our next edition of the STaR magazine.

STaR MAGAZINE / EDITION 5 / 27

CSDS CONTACT INFORMATION

Phone
(07) 3646 6500
Fax
(07) 3646 6501
Email
CSDS-Admin@health.qld.gov.au
Website
www.sdc.qld.edu.au
Street address
Level 4 Block 6
Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital
Herston, Queensland, 4006
Business hours
Monday - Friday: 7:30am - 4:30pm
Saturday and Sunday: Closed
Mailing address
PO Box 470
Herston Queensland, 4029
Australia

Accreditation

CSDS courses are

accredited through:

Australian College of Emergency Medicine

Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine
Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists
College of Intensive Care Medicine of Australia and
New Zealand

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