Where Virtual Hits RealityDeveloping Disaster Management Mastery in Virtual Reality

Health STAT August 1st, 2013Victor H. Cid, NLM SIS DIMRC, NIH, HHS

Hospital Incident ManagementThe Hospital Incident Command

System (HICS)Hierarchical system – not tied to

org. hierarchyComes to life during an emergencySpecific roles, each with well-

defined tasksAnybody in the organization can

play any role

BHEPPEnhancing disaster resiliency of

◦Suburban Hospital - John Hopkins Medicine

◦NIH Clinical Center◦Walter Reed National Military Medical

CenterNLM enlisted for R&D workEleven R&D projects

Traditional HICS TrainingMandatory for Joint Commission

accreditationMethods vary, but include:

◦Individual study, ◦classroom sessions, ◦table-top exercises, ◦functional exercises, ◦full-scale exercises (FSEs)

Hospitals identified issues.

Issues Frequently CitedCost and complexity of conducting functional

and FSEsStaff engagement issuesDifficulty scheduling exercises due to complex

work shifts, staff turnover and staff availability

Difficulty simulating event conditions and information flow realistically during training

Complexity of capturing and analyzing training performance data

Impact of exercises on normal hospital activities

VR TrainingVirtual reality simulation of hospital

incident commandTesting applicability of this technology

on this contextNLM developed VR training

environment and web e-learning platform

Contractors helped design instructional aspects and exercises, conduct virtual scenario, analyze results

VR Training

Videohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYEgZxHQHjQ

FindingsPlanning VR exercises is as costly as

planning traditional table-top exercisesEngagingRealistic simulation of eventsReal-time access to real and simulated

information tools24/7 availability through InternetDetailed performance data captureMinimizes impact on hospital operationsSame platform useful for other training

Thank you.

Victor Cid, NLM DIMRCvcid@nlm.nih.gov