Trustees Approve Simulation Lab Equipment Bids

The East Central College Board of Trustees Nov. 2 approved the bid for $132,610 in equipment for Nursing and EMT program simulation lab equipment.

Trustees unanimously approved the bids for new manikins, equipment and software for the lab. The state-of-the-art technology is funded through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Business Development grant program at no cost to ECC.

The USDA grant program is a competitive grant designed to support targeted technical assistance, training and other activities leading to the development or expansion of small and emerging private businesses in rural areas. ECC is receiving a total of $180,704 in grant funds from the USDA.

Nancy Mitchell, Dean of Health Sciences, told Trustees that the equipment comes at a time when simulation lab equipment is increasingly more important due to COVID-19 restrictions at ECC health care partners.

“During a time when clinical space can be a challenge for nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic, the simulation lab provides the ability to educate and train students,” Mitchell said.

She added that the eight manikins simulate real-life responses to the student’s medical intervention displaying symptoms and reactions to the care they receive from the students.

“Technology is advancing quickly, and we want to be sure we have the most up-to-date simulation equipment in our labs to prepare our students in the patient care setting,” Mitchell said.

Joel Doepker, Vice President of External Relations, said the college was awarded the grant based on evidence showing job creation at local businesses, economic need in the area to be served and consistency with local economic development priorities. During the grant application process, ECC received several letters of support for the project from local health care systems.

“This grant positions the college to expand our Nursing and EMT programs and address the regional skills gap,” said Doepker. “We appreciate the USDA’s program that recognizes East Central College as a good investment.”

According to Mitchell, the simulation will provide an excellent learning strategy to help prepare students to enter the workforce.

“Our clinical partners at the health care systems in our region provide excellent learning experiences for our students,” she said. “A high-fidelity simulation lab provides the students real-life scenarios in a safe place to hone their skills and potentially make mistakes without harm to an actual patient.”