Monthly Archives: February 2020

//February

VR tender to train Singapore’s environment staff opens

  Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) has put out a tender to find VR solutions to enhance the training of its staff involved in dengue home inspections and public health offences. These include smoking in prohibited areas, and littering in public places. The NEA are looking to VR to better prepare staff for scenarios that are tricky to replicate in a classroom. It would also assist with scenarios that could be more risky such as inspecting rooftops or construction sites. Using VR would supplement the classroom training that environment officers undergo to learn how to deal with different situations posed by members of the public. Officers might face uncooperative offenders in their daily enforcement rounds. Or offenders who refuse to provide details to officers. The NEA said the results of several proof-of-concept trials, conducted in 2019, were positive. "To ensure that our officers are well equipped to deal with the challenges of tomorrow, skills upgrading and enhancing productivity are important aspects of our strategy to make NEA a change-responsive and future-ready organisation," said NEA Chief Executive Officer Tan Meng Dui. "Tapping on the technology such as VR for the training of our enforcement officers is part of this strategy." The [...]

By | 2020-02-25T10:33:04+00:00 February 25th, 2020|

Virtual Gaming Revolutionizes Pharmacy Education

Education Management Solutions, LLC (EMS), released a new virtual gaming platform centered around pharmacy and clinical therapeutics education for both individual learning and interprofessional teams. Developed in partnership with Professor Stephen Duffull of the University of Otago School of Pharmacy, New Zealand, SimPHARM gives pharmacy, medical, nursing, and allied health schools a framework to help students more effectively bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world patient care. Image credit: Education Management Solutions. SimPHARM is a clinical therapeutic simulation tool that creates a realistic clinical experience in which one minute of virtual time equals one minute of real-time. Ideal for flipped classroom and interprofessional team learning environments, the platform's cognitive game engine empowers students to develop their clinical decision-making skills, independently and in conjunction with other clinical team members, within the confines of real-life patient case constructs while under the supervision of faculty. With this partnership, EMS and the University of Otago establish a new standard for pharmacy and interprofessional education that effectively prepares students for real-world clinical practice. SimPHARM helps students develop critical real-time decision-making skills, and understand the consequences of those decisions through self-reflection, debriefing, and peer feedback. "SimPHARM grew out of a desire to enhance [...]

By | 2020-02-21T20:09:59+00:00 February 21st, 2020|

Design Interactive AR Solution On Display at AWS 2020

Design Interactive Inc. (DI) will be exhibiting at the U.S. Air Force Association (AFA)’s Air Warfare Symposium taking place in Orlando Florida, from February 26th – 28th at the Rosen Shingle Creek. DI will be showcasing AUGMENTOR, an augmented reality (AR) maintenance tool originally developed for commercial trucking fleet maintenance. The current system includes compatibility with augmented reality headsets (i.e. HoloLens, MagicLeap), an Android and iOS application, and a web-based dashboard for authoring, storage, and dissemination of content. Image credit: Design Interactive Through an AFWERX contract, DI has worked with the Air Force to expand AUGMENTOR to support aviation maintenance training and custom designed features to meet airmen needs. In partnership with the 367 Training Support Squadron out of Hill Air Force Base (AFB), the DI team led a series of software development iterations and demonstrations culminating in a successful small group trial at Travis AFB.  The new approach to Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contracts initiated by AFWERX provided DI the unique opportunity to rapidly advance existing technology to meet Air Force needs. AFA's Air Warfare Symposium brings together Air Force leadership as well as leaders in industry, academia, and government officials to discuss the issues and [...]

By | 2020-02-20T22:04:34+00:00 February 20th, 2020|

US Air Force Transforming Maintenance, Logistics Training

As the Air Force continues to evolve to meet the challenges of a constantly evolving global security environment, the 82nd Training Wing is working to transform maintenance and logistics technical training. About 44% of the Air Force’s technical training is accomplished at the 82nd Training Wing, said Kenyon Bell, 82nd Training Wing commander – which includes logistics and most engineering career fields. The 82nd delivers more than 65,000 graduates annually in more than 900 maintenance, logistics, civil engineering and some cyber and missile maintenance courses. These courses cover not only initial skills training, but advanced and specialty courses delivered at 60 locations around the globe. “That includes logistics readiness; aircraft, munitions and missile maintenance; and civil engineering,” Bell said. “We have a significant role in training all of those disciplines, either entirely within the 82nd or in concert with our joint partners and also our sister wings in Second Air Force. That means we have a huge challenge and a huge opportunity – to transform technical training, and specifically maintenance and logistics training, to meet the strategic demands of a 21st Century force.” Bell said the wing, Second Air Force and AETC have been laying the foundations for this transformation [...]

By | 2020-02-20T19:54:33+00:00 February 20th, 2020|

KARL STORZ and VirtaMed release laparoscopic simulator

  Endoscopy manufacturers KARL STORZ and VirtaMed, the medical training simulation firm, have collaborated on a mixed reality simulator to enhance laparoscopic skills training. The LapTrainer simulator enables medical professionals to acquire key skills with increased efficiency by repetition of short simulation sequences. The simulator features an anatomically correct abdomen model. Medical professionals can practice patient positioning, trocar placement and correct OR team setup in true-to-life conditions. This endoscopic training boasts the latest research in computer graphics, including the ability to visualize and manipulate the entire abdomen. LapTrainer includes KARL STORZ flagship products such as the EndoCAMeleon, a multifunctional endoscope with a versatile viewing angle. It also has the CLICKline and RoBi instrument series and near infrared fluorescence imaging applications for the clear differentiation of key anatomical structures from surrounding organs using an ICG fluorescence agent. “Overtaking existing laparoscopy simulators, LapTrainer with an abdominal model and real and high-quality endoscopic equipment provides excellent training and education in laparoscopy," said Dr. Peter Solleder, Executive Director New Applications at KARL STORZ. "Education and training of surgeons is an important part when cooperating with the medical community and following this we have expanded our Virtual Reality Simulator family. For the surgeon’s safety and [...]

By | 2020-02-17T09:40:39+00:00 February 17th, 2020|

Emerson’s New VR Simulation To Improve Workforce Safety

Emerson releases Mimic Field 3D, an immersive training experience designed to help new and incoming workers gain a deep understanding of how changes in the field impact industrial plant processes. This virtual reality-based (VR) solution gives personnel simulated hands-on experience to prepare for any plant event, helping them make better decisions regarding operating changes and practice proper procedures before entering potentially hazardous plant areas. Image credit: Emerson In the coming decade, experts estimate there will be more than 2.5 million skilled jobs that go unfilled in the United States. There’s a clear need for organizations to seek innovative technology solutions to address this talent shortage quickly through innovative augmented reality and VR solutions like Mimic Field 3D. In fact, a recent survey found that 66% of companies plan to adopt these technologies by 2022. Field operators typically train on physical equipment, which adds risks and costs, particularly during some of the plant’s most critical phases—startups, shutdowns, turnarounds and outages. Many organizations are seeking technology solutions to rapidly upskill new workers for high performance in the shortest amount of time. “Emerson’s digital twin portfolio is changing how we prepare the future workforce. Our industry will become increasingly reliant on [...]

By | 2020-02-14T18:02:16+00:00 February 14th, 2020|

Buckner Heavylift Adds ITI Online to Training Program

Buckner Heavylift Cranes has added the ITI Online Learning course library to its training program. The Safety Library courses offered through ITI Online will supplement Buckner’s monthly safety training curriculum across their entire company as well as provide highly targeted refresher training specific to its highly skilled riggers, operators and signal-persons with the Crane & Rigging Library. The content, paired with an LMS that allows for detailed reporting and tracking, provided a perfect combination for Buckner.

By | 2020-02-14T17:32:18+00:00 February 14th, 2020|

MemorialCare Earns Top Honor from Patient Safety Movement Foundation

The Patient Safety Movement Foundation (PSMF) has presented MemorialCare with its highest honor, the 5-Star Hospital Award, in recognition of MemorialCare’s steadfast commitment to patient safety and quality of care. The award was presented by PSMF founder Joe Kiani to MemorialCare President and CEO Barry Arbuckle during a ceremony at MemorialCare headquarters. “We are incredibly proud of the leadership that MemorialCare has taken in the area of patient safety,” Kiani said, “and hope that other hospitals will be inspired by MemorialCare’s bold commitment to action.” PSMF’s 5-Star hospital program began in 2018 and MemorialCare is one of only six health systems across the United States to receive the award. “Patient safety and quality of care are always top of mind and top of heart at MemorialCare,” said Barry Arbuckle, Ph.D., president and CEO, MemorialCare. “I commend the incredible work PSMF is doing to bring together health systems, healthcare technology companies, patient advocates and others to dramatically improve patient safety.” PSMF has established evidence-based Actionable Patient Safety Solutions (APSS) that provide specific, proven processes to help hospitals prevent medical harm. Written by teams of experts in their respective fields, APSS include creating a culture of safety, patient blood management, early detection [...]

By | 2020-02-14T17:21:17+00:00 February 14th, 2020|

 PSMF Pre-Summit Symposium Coming Soon

Image credit: Patient Safety Movement Foundation The Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s Pre-Summit Symposium is taking place on Thursday, March 5, 2020. Healthcare leaders from across the globe will present their experiences implementing the PSMF’s Actionable Patient Safety Solutions and will share their outcomes and lessons learned. Two sessions are scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Participants will choose from several 2-hour moderated presentations during each session, each featuring 4-5 healthcare organizations and an interactive Q&A discussion. Each session has been awarded two Continuing Education (CE) credits for physicians, nurses, and pharmacists by MedStar Health.    

By | 2020-02-14T16:50:35+00:00 February 14th, 2020|

Metaari Predicts Simulation-based Tech To Transform Training Market

The global market for AR, VR and Simulation-based learning products is in the midst of profound transformation – not growing traditionally via small incremental changes to existing products annually –but driven by fundamentally new types of learning products. Metaari, the firm analyzing change in the learning technologies market, forecasts global revenues will surge to $15.6 billion by 2025. Catalysts currently driving this growth. Image credit: Metaari The one common characteristic of these new learning technologies is that they enable real-time performance improvement. "These next-generation AR, VR, and Simulation-based products accomplish both knowledge transfer and learning transfer, each a phase of the learning process, simultaneously," Sam Adkins, chief analyst, Metaari explains. Early-to-market suppliers have primed market growth by giving away entry-level products to schools. Children exposed to VR go home asking parents to buy them home use products. Manufacturers have also made a concentrated effort to implement AR and VR instructional programs in the global high education segment. Development engine companies Unity and Epic's Unreal Engine offer free academic licensing models. The large spend is coming, with corporate training leading the forecast. Metaari's 281 page report is designed to provide insight to investors and sales leads to solution providers, [...]

By | 2020-02-14T16:22:14+00:00 February 14th, 2020|