L-R: Stephanie Wilsey, MD; Rick Pescatore, MD; Grace Lam, MD; and Sarab Sodhi, MD
A team of emergency medicine residents from Cooper University Health Care — Stephanie Wilsey, MD; Rick Pescatore, MD; Grace Lam, MD; and Sarab Sodhi, MD — captured first place in the SimWars, held during the New Jersey Chapter-American College of Emergency Physicians (NJ-ACEP) annual conference recently.
SimWars puts four-person teams from across the state in a medical emergency scenario where they must work together to assess the situation, make a quick diagnoses, and provide appropriate care on a patient simulator that acts, sounds, and looks like a real human. A physician panel judges each team on their quality of medical treatment, team work, and communication skills to determine the winner.
“Simulation in emergency medicine has become a standard in the training of residents,” explained Richard Byrne, MD, Assistant Residency Program Director, Cooper University Health Care. “By placing them in these realist situations, the residents get a true sense of what it’s like to provide emergent care in a stressful, high-stakes environment.”
Adding to the high-pressure event, this year’s SimWars presented a surprise twist with each team given two cases at once.
“Although two patients were unexpected, we experienced how complex and challenging the emergency department can be,” said Dr. Wilsey. “What we do and how we think as a team can have immediate and life-changing implications for the patients and their families, so we need to be prepared for whatever comes our way.”
Wendy A. Marano
Public Relations Manager
marano-wendy@cooperhealth.edu
Office: 856.382.6463
Cell: 856.904.1688