MICHAEL & MELISSA

SIMULATION LAB ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR & CLINICAL NURSE MANAGER

The World Health Organization recently reported that maternal mortality is on the rise in the United States. One of the things we can do to prevent mortality is to train our nurses and staff on how to handle acute emergencies in the labor and delivery room.

That’s what we’re doing with the SimMom program, jointly funded by the Albert Einstein Society and the Frank J. Tornetta School of Anesthesia. The grants allowed us to purchase a simulation manikin that we use to train our obstetrics team on how to handle emergencies that sometimes occur during labor.

Through a computer, our SimMom can give birth head first, feet first, or with the umbilical cord wrapped around the baby. We can make her bleed, have a seizure, or induce many other medical conditions on her, allowing our team to practice how to communicate and care for the patient in the safest method possible.

Being in a safe learning environment builds communication, trust, and a more efficient system for how we deal with emergencies.

Our goal is to have healthy moms and healthy babies. Because of the Albert Einstein Society and the SimMom program, our team feels more confident in providing safe patient care.

Together, donors and grantees like us are making a difference. We are Einstein.

Monica Nash, BSN, RN, is a Nurse Manager at Einstein Medical Center Montgomery. Debbie Newell is the Clinical Director of Surgical Step Down and Telemetry at Einstein Medical Center Montgomery.