Finding our (sim) people in a globally connected world – Virtual Communities of Practice 

How do we find our simulation friends online? What supports the formation and nurturing of these professional groups? This month Ben and Vic discuss the paper of the month….. 

 Thoma, B., Brazil, V., Spurr, J., Palaganas, J., Eppich, W., Grant, V. and Cheng, A. (2018). Establishing a Virtual Community of Practice in Simulation. Simulation in Healthcare: The Journal of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, 13(2), pp.124-130. 

We explore what that means, and consider some examples Our expert commentator @andrewjtagg offers his experience with https://dontforgetthebubbles.com/ 

For more great listening on CoP in health professions education – listen here  

We continued the CoP theme in looking at :- 

“It's Not an Acting Job … Don't Underestimate What a Simulated Patient Does” A Qualitative Study Exploring the Perspectives of Simulated Patients in Health Professions Education 

Pritchard, Shane A. BPhysio; Denning, Tracy MOsteo; Keating, Jennifer L. PhD; Blackstock, Felicity C. PhD; Nestel, Debra PhD Simulation in Healthcare: February 2020 - Volume 15 - Issue 1 - p 21-29 

And Ben’s own… 

Twigg S, Ardila Sarmiento MC, Lawton B, et al. Optimus BONUS: open access simulation-based education packages on paediatric resuscitation using spaced repetition and deliberate practice. BMJ Simulation and Technology Enhanced Learning Published Online First: 09 January 2020. doi: 10.1136/bmjstel-2019-000536 

More on the packages here https://dontforgetthebubbles.com/practice-made-perfect/ 

And finally …… coronavirus sim…. of course…… Who says a mannikin can’t sneeze….? 

https://emsimcases.com/2020/02/18/suspected-covid-19/ 

Look forward to next month! 

Vic and Ben