In healthcare, a mistake can have real-life consequences. At Kennesaw State University (KSU), we’re taking the mitigating the risk away by training nurses with hands-on, realistic, and frequent training. The largest nursing program in north Georgia, the Wellstar School of Nursing is bigger, better, and busier with its state-of-the-art nursing simulation lab. The lab is designed to engage students in patient-care settings before they ever work on a real patient, yielding more confident and skilled healthcare workers.
In the classroom, students can learn everything they need to know about diseases, treatments, and the human body—but how can this knowledge seamlessly transfer to real-life scenarios where the stakes are incredibly high?
Nursing simulation labs are the future of taking theoretical knowledge from the textbook page and putting it into action. Because our students work in a simulated environment, they can learn how to react in real-world, high-pressure situations before it ever comes to managing a patient’s care in a live setting. There’s room to turn knowledge into practice, refine techniques, and build confidence—providing our students with a crucial edge in their professional readiness.
Meeting the Demand for Healthcare Workers
As the largest nursing program in the north Georgia region, KSU is uniquely positioned to meet the growing demand for healthcare professionals. Georgia is currently facing a nursing shortage and has more than 20% fewer registered nurses than it needs, according to the Federal Health Resources Service Administration. With the ability to educate and graduate a substantial number of nurses faster, we’re helping to fill critical gaps in the healthcare system and enhance the industry’s quality of care nationally.
Our graduates are ready to dive into practicums with clinical experiences already in hand. Thanks to their extra practice, they’ll find the job more predictable, manageable, and rewarding, knowing they’re well-prepared for the realities of the profession.
As Real As It Can Get
Kennesaw State’s nursing simulation lab is as close to a real hospital as you can get without stepping into one. Spanning over 13,000 square feet of nursing laboratory space, the lab is equipped with two health assessment labs, three 2,800 square foot general nursing skills labs with nursing stations and 44 hospital beds, a pediatric/obstetric lab, five individual physical assessment exam rooms, and three simulation suites with three simulation control rooms. The simulation suites provide a variety of specialized rooms to mirror the diverse experiences nurses will face.
In our labs, students practice everything from psychomotor skills—like administering injections or starting IVs—to physical examination techniques, ensuring they’re ready to meet the physical demands of patient care. Our Physical Assessment Labs, with two rooms and six examination spaces, give students the chance to perform comprehensive assessments, from routine check-ups to more focused evaluations.
For those who will specialize in pediatrics or maternity, there is a dedicated Pediatric/Maternity Lab, complete with a high-fidelity maternity manikin and 4 lifelike high-fidelity infant and child manikins. These labs allow students to handle everything from childbirth to pediatric emergencies, preparing them for the unique challenges of these fields.
In addition to the Skills Labs, KSU offers Simulation Rooms, which include 3 control rooms where faculty can guide and adjust the scenarios in real-time, making the experience as dynamic and responsive as actual patient care. After each simulation, students head to one of our 4 Debriefing Rooms, equipped with video replay monitors, to review their performance, receive feedback, and discuss what they’ve learned.
Along with the high-fidelity maternity and child manikins, the simulation lab also has 9 high-fidelity manikins and/or real actors that are utilized in the simulation experiences. The actors play patients or family members to provide real practice with interacting with people. Virtual reality headsets as well as avatars also provide simulated experiences for students in the lab
Looking to the Future
We’re doing more than just keeping up with the demands of the healthcare field at Kennesaw State—we’re setting up the next generation of nurses for success. By providing simulation experiences with opportunities to practice clinical judgment and graduating well-prepared healthcare professionals, Kennesaw State University is helping to address the nationwide shortage of nurses and support the Georgia economy. And with new technology on our side, we see the nursing program anticipating and addressing the complexities of modern healthcare, so our future nurses go out into the world ready to provide the highest level of care.
The future of patient care is in good hands—and it starts here, in the KSU simulation lab. To take your own peek inside the lab, visit this link.
