The £100,000 state-of-the-art facility has been specially designed to help support paramedic, midwifery and nursing students as they learn practical skills.
Students are filmed and audio recorded as they tackle tasks and scenarios and their performances are analysed to look for improvements. Some of the procedures, including resuscitation techniques, are performed using mannequins.
Students say sessions in the Flexible Learning Environment are much more realistic than those provided in the lecture room. One said: “It enables us to practice without a mentor present so if we make mistakes we can learn from them. The whole experience of being involved and evaluating each other’s work is ideal.”
The flat, at the university’s Varley Park in Coldean Lane, 91¶¶Òõ, provides an example of a real home environment that paramedics and other health care workers may be called to. It comprises a lounge, kitchen, bedrooms and hall, all equipped with cameras and microphones. There is a sound-proof control room and an observation room with one-way mirrors and an audio-visual system for debriefing.
One paramedic tutor said: “It’s the closest we can get to seeing students in practice without being on a shift with them ourselves.”
The flat is available for use by health and social care professionals, or organisations which would benefit from simulating learning in a home environment.
Find out more about the flexible learning environment.