New state-of-the-art nursing and midwifery laboratories at UTS provide the most "high fidelity" practice learning experiences "outside of a clinical placement" according to Dean of the Faculty of Health Professor John Daly.
Officially opened this week by the Secretary of the NSW Ministry of Health Elizabeth Koff, the expanded UTS clinical facilities were amongst the best in Australia Professor Daly said.
Dean of the Faculty of Health Professor John Daly, Secretary of the NSW Ministry of Health Elizabeth Koff and UTS Provost Professor Peter Booth at the official opening. Picture by Anna Zhu
"Our new nursing and midwifery facilities are simply exceptional," he said. "Each space has been purposefully designed to provide a realistic and safe learning environment.
"As a result, students are exposed to real-world clinical scenarios and environments that facilitate critical thinking, enhance self-confidence and enable a smooth transition to practice."
During the opening Ms Koff highlighted the need for continued investment in the healthcare sector and the importance to future nurses and midwives of practising their skills in a risk-free environment.
Set up to look and feel exactly like hospital wards, aged care facilities and primary health care services, the new facilities are designed to help students apply their knowledge as they learn.
Picture by Andrew Worssam
They include laboratories, industry modelled simulation bays, high-tech control rooms, clinical examination rooms, student breakout areas and a community room with the capacity to oscillate between primary health care, maternity and home care visit environments.
Associate Dean for Teaching and Learning Associate Professor Joanne Gray said, "When you walk into the labs, you feel like you're walking into a hospital ward – ready to attach a line or assist with the birth of a baby. And that was the objective when designing them."
The university has invested in world-class facilities so that building design, supported by technology, can create an environment that supports UTS's distinctive and innovative learning approach.
Using simulation learning strategies, students can actively participate in authentic care scenarios and nursing and midwifery students often comment that simulations make them "think on their feet".
The new facilities include:
- New student breakout areas
- 7 new clinical laboratories
- 4 state-of-the-art simulation bays ("Sim Bays") linked to control rooms
- 1 community room
- 1 clinical examination room
- Several meeting rooms for students and staff
UTS now has 14 clinical laboratories, 4 high-fidelity simulators and more than 30 other manikins replicating varying patient demographics.
- UTS has officially launched state-of-the-art nursing and midwifery laboratories that provide a new level of authenticity in practice learning
- The facilities look and feel exactly like hospital wards, aged care facilities and primary health care services, exposing students to real-world clinical scenarios that develop clinical judgement, improve confidence and enhance practical learning