Drexel nurses star in medical drama

0 Comments | Philadelphia Inquirer, The, October, 2006 | by Rusty Pray

Leland "Rocky" Rockstraw believes simulation is the best preparation for the real thing. In his line of work, health care, the teaching tool is underused, he believes. "We have to stop practicing on people and start practicing on simulated patients," said Rockstraw, who is director of the Center for Clinical and Electronic Learning Resources at Drexel University's College of Nursing and Health Professions.

In his view, nurses need a place to practice clinical skills as much as pilots need to "fly" simulator planes before they sit in the cockpit of a plane full of passengers. "A pilot crashes on a simulator, no harm done," said Rockstraw, a Sicklerville resident. "When a health-care provider makes a mistake, someone is harmed." Rockstraw has designed a state-of-the-art...