Watch: How ‘standardised’ actors help Dubai doctors, medical students hone their skills
Inside a unique Dubai centre, which could well be a fully operational hospital
Dubai: We are on the second floor of a 34,000 sq ft healthcare facility in Dubai, when we hear the cries of a young child from inside the Pediatric ICU. The child is being attended to, amidst a barrage of questions from his anxious mum, quite in a state herself. He is breathing heavily, as the movement of his chest clearly indicates. His pupil is visibly dilated and he barely manages to blink his eyes. Pointing to his vital signs on the bedside monitor, the doctor issues a set of instructions.
The team around him is all ears. Once the situation comes under control, they all head to a debriefing room, where the case, treatment plan and prognosis are discussed at length.
We could well be in a fully operational hospital – it’s as real as it gets. But we are on an exclusive tour of the Khalaf Al Habtoor Medical Simulation Center (KHMSC), an entity under Dubai Health, that allows healthcare students and professionals to undergo necessary training with simulation.
“The child you saw in the ICU was a high-fidelity mannequin capable of many human-like functions. His mum was a standardised actor who simulated a real-life scenario to enable learners to practise in a realistic environment,” Dr. Ralf Krage, Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and the centre’s director, tells Gulf News.
“Participants refine their clinical decision-making skills, teamwork and communication here, ensuring they are well-prepared for real-world medical challenges,” he says.
The massive three-storey facility features all key components of a multi-specialty hospital, right from the ambulance bay and emergency ward to two operating theatres, a maternity ward, ICUs that can hold up to six patients, clinical consultation rooms and wards, complete with washrooms where fall scenarios are simulated.
“The Accident & Emergency Department is ideal for disaster and mass casualty management training following due Emergency Room protocols, including pre-hospital to hospital,” says Dr Krage.
The ER is equipped with three minor beds, two major bays and two resuscitation bays, an exclusive ambulance bay with a simulated ambulance. A radiology unit with CT Scanner is also available.
Similarly, the maternity ward and delivery suite can be configured to all birthing scenarios, from first stage to a labour room setup. The ward has a SimMom simulator where a baby can be delivered normally or by Caesarian section. Abnormal labour and birthing difficulties can also be simulated. The room is equipped with a neonatal resuscitation unit, incubator and monitoring equipment. There’s a bowl of ‘blood’ too next to the incubator.
“We offer training in a wide range of procedural skills at the centre. They include delivery, airway management, IV cannulation, catheter placement, ultrasound examination and suturing,” says Dr Krage.
When procedures are simulated, instructors and technicians sit behind a glass screen in the control room, from where they manage the scenarios without distracting the students.
Dr Krage explains how the centre draws from a bank of around 100 simulated patients or actors who help enact different encounters. These actors are real people who are trained to reproduce patient history, physical and emotional scenarios just like an actual patient and his or family would present. They present not just the patient’s health history but also the body language, emotions and personality.
There’s a separate unit focused on community engagement with the concept being extended to young children. It is called the Teddy Bear Hospital, the first of its kind in the UAE.
“Children get to experience the journey of visiting a hospital, along with a teddy bear or stuffed toy patient. Treatments are carried out by healthcare professionals in patient wards and operating rooms.
“They play the role of a parent or family member, help the doctor, and watch medical procedures from a different perspective. The idea is to promote healthcare awareness and help them overcome their fear and anxiety of visiting a hospital,” explained Dr Krage.
Beneficiaries of KHMSC trainings
Students across Dubai Health colleges: College of Medicine, Hamdan Bin Mohamed College of Dental Medicine, College of Nursing & Midwifery
Learners in Dubai Health’s graduate medical education, which includes interns, residents, and fellows.
Practising healthcare professionals with a focus on Interprofessional Education (IPE), where healthcare teams —including doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists—train together to enhance collaboration and patient care.