Arkansas Children's provides right-sized care for your child. U.S. News & World Report has ranked Arkansas Children's in seven specialties for 2022-2023.
Our ERs are staffed 24/7 with doctors, nurses and staff who know kids best – all trained to deliver right-sized care for your child in a safe environment.
Arkansas Children's provides right-sized care for your child. U.S. News & World Report has ranked Arkansas Children's in seven specialties for 2022-2023.
When you give to Arkansas Children's, you help deliver on our promise of a better today and a healthier tomorrow for the children of Arkansas and beyond
Arkansas Children's Simulation Education Center
(ACSEC)
Arkansas Children’s Simulation Education Center opened in 2007, becoming the country’s first comprehensive simulation program at a children’s hospital. Today, the ACSEC is situated in a 4,200 SF stand-alone building on the campus of Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. The current configuration of space, which includes two medical education/simulation rooms, three outpatient clinic/exam rooms, two debrief/conference rooms and an observation room, allows us to simulate clinic rooms, inpatient rooms, emergency department bays, and even the hospital lobby. In addition, we take simulation courses and trainings out of the ACSEC and into the places and spaces where real events happen. This has been possible because of industry advancements that have allowed us to use improved wireless manikins and other transportable technology outside of the ACSEC. We have provided simulation trainings in the hospital, our outpatient clinics, at Arkansas Children’s Northwest and in communities around Arkansas.
Our Mission
In support of the mission, vision and values of Arkansas Children’s, the Arkansas Children’s Simulation Education Center (ACSEC) increases overall safety, advances skills training, promotes team development, and supports quality/safety/risk improvements using innovate simulation education.
Gaps in learning and practice can be identified and remedied
Real-time response to (mock) emergencies can be rehearsed, allowing team members to clarify roles and responsibilities while improving internal communication
Individual and team decision-making skills can be sharpened
Correct practice can foster confidence, consistency and proficiency in a challenging healthcare environment
Processes can be studied and honed
Communication skills with our patients and families can be improved
Hands-on practice can make more impact than more passive learning methods
Simulation education supports:
Safety for patients, families, and Arkansas Children’s team members
Consistency and quality in how we deliver care, how we improve processes
Innovation in healthcare practice
ACSEC Initiatives
In support of the bold 2020-2025 Strategic Plan of Arkansas Children’s, the ACSEC is focused on programming that reinforces Arkansas Children’s promise: Unprecedented Child Health. Defined and Delivered.
Many of the courses currently offered and being planned will contribute to our success in advancing patient care, building community, and championing excellence. Examples of current and planned curricula/training include:
Telehealth Curriculum – Delivering healthcare to patients and families across the state
CANDOR – Improving communication with our patients and families
eCPR/ECMO Training – Providing ongoing practice in critical life-saving procedures
Patient/Family Education – Supporting families with hands-on practice before returning home
First Responder Training – Focusing on pediatric emergency response for firefighters, paramedics, school nurses, athletic trainers and others throughout Arkansas
Task-Specific Education – Using innovative 3D printing and modeling for practicing pediatric procedures
Around Arkansas Children’s Hospital
Many departments and areas of practice in our hospital utilize the ACSEC to help meet current education and training needs. Examples of some of the most frequent participants in our trainings include:
Department
2019 Education Hours
Emergency
1935
Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU)
1581
Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)
1197
American Heart Association Training Center
1189
UAMS Department of Pediatrics
1184
In the Community
Our Center provides pediatric specific training to places in the community as well. Some of those include:
Athletic Trainers
Fire Departments
Local EMS
Police Departments
Pediatric Emergencies
School Nurses
3D Printing for Cardiac
The ACSEC has invested in several 3-D printers and is in the process of designing products that can be used locally to address problems. We are also beginning to partner in processes of creating breakthrough solutions to quality safety problems. For example, a 3-D heart is being utilized to produce heart models for patients who are born with a congenital defect. These models serve both the surgeon and surgical team as well as the family who can see with great detail what the heart looks like in comparison to normal heart anatomy. This helps the family better understand what repairs will be needed and help to make the surgery remain uneventful with good outcomes.