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Clinical Learning Resource Center granted provisional accreditation from Society for Simulation in Healthcare

Status reflects the center’s commitment to high-quality care simulation education

The Texas A&M Health Clinical Learning Resource Center (CLRC) has been granted provisional accreditation from the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) by demonstrating a commitment and attentive focus to the structure and processes for delivering high-quality health care simulation education.

During the two-year provisional period, the CLRC will continue to collect data and implement standards of best practice with the intent of applying for full SSH accreditation.

“This accomplishment is a result of the collaborative spirit at all levels within Texas A&M Health,” said CLRC Director Bruce Williams, MS, MSN, RN, CHSE, CHSOS.

The Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) is an international organization of health care professionals that seeks to improve performance and reduce errors in patient care through the use of simulation. The organization was formed in 2004 by a group of professionals using simulation for education, testing and research in health care. SSH fosters the improvement and application of simulation-based delivery modalities such as human patient simulators, virtual reality, standardized patients and task trainers.

The Texas A&M Health CLRC provides state-of-the-art facilities and personnel to help health care students refine their fundamental and clinical skills in controlled, simulated health care environments. In the CLRC, instructors utilize highly specialized instructional technology, including computer-programmed full-body manikins that can realistically simulate a range of physiological states and responses. The CLRC also provides a standardized patient program that allows students to work with individuals who portray patients of all ages with specific medical conditions.

The application process for SSH accreditation requires a review of all levels of simulation operations and teaching methodologies. It took an interprofessional team of health care educators at Texas A&M Health a year of writing, developing supporting documents and collecting data in order to meet specific application criteria and demonstrate multiple standards. The SSH granted provisional accreditation following a substantial submission with evidence addressing the CLRC’s compliance with SSH’s core requirements and teaching/education standards.

“Although accreditation is not required, it absolutely shows Texas A&M’s commitment to high-quality teaching and learning environments which are very student-centered,” Williams said. “This benefits the students through the structure, policies and procedures put forward in this application. This means that learners will encounter scenarios and practices that are on par with other accredited centers.”

The provisional window acknowledges the center’s plan for implementing what was proposed in the application and allows time to collect data and meet specific metrics. The CLRC must have two years of data and additional evidence to support the application for full accreditation.

The application writers included Angela Mulcahy, PhD, RN, CMSRN, CHSE, clinical associate professor at College of Nursing, and Elizabeth Wells-Beede, PhD, RN, C-EFM, CHSE, clinical assistant professor at the College of Nursing. Hector Chapa, MD, FACOG, clinical assistant professor and director of interprofessional education at the College of Medicine, and Megan Doyel, RN, MS, associate director of the CLRC, served on the interview group.

Media contact: media@tamu.edu

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