SimMen land at Pine Technical College

Photo: PTC President Robert Musgrove (in blue, center) examines a new SimMan acquired by the Health Care Alliance.

New SimMen (simulation manikins) have arrived at Pine Technical College and Anoka-Ramsey Community College - Cambridge. The high-tech SimMen will be used for students enrolled in healthcare programs (such as nursing), allowing them to experience realistic patient scenarios in the classroom. A 3G SimMan was purchased for each college, and a traditional SimMan will be loanable to all Health Care Alliance partners, and a SimBaby also will be housed at PTC.

The Health Care Alliance is an organization born when a $4.2 million grant project was awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The project, called Health Occupations Providing Economic Stimulus (HOPES) is working to recruit, train and employ almost 1,200 registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, certified nursing assistants, home health aides and medical laboratory technologists in east central Minnesota and western Wisconsin. The project's aim is to offset a predicted dire shortage of health care workers. Health Care Alliance partners working together include Pine Technical College, Anoka-Ramsey Community College - Cambridge, Kanabec Hospital, and more.

One practical nursing student at PTC, a lucky recipient of a HOPES/Health Care Alliance-backed scholarship, is blogging her way through the program. For a first-person account and student viewpoint of the program, follow Tara Irwin's blog as she records her journey -- complete with inspiring anecdotes and often comical highlights.

For more information about the HOPES grant and the Health Care Alliance, click here, or call 320-629-4566. Also, be a fan of the Health Care Alliance on Facebook!