Part of AU’s College of Health Professions, the Center for Medical Simulations is designed to provide a realistic clinical experience for students in nursing, human performance, and physical therapy.
A Simulated Hospital
From the minute you step inside the center, you’ll get a feeling you’re walking onto a hall at a modern hospital. Rooms are arranged and equipped just as they would be in a working healthcare facility. But instead of beds filled with patients, AU has equipped the center with more than a dozen human simulators. This cutting-edge technology looks like human-scale replicas of patients, from newborns to adults, and can simulate a variety of conditions, including asthma attacks, congestive heart failure and seizures. Interactive in every way, the simulators allow students to ask questions – and get responses – while practicing skills ranging from CPR to the care and maintenance of test tubes.
Once students have completed a simulation, they can move to the center’s cadaver lab, where instructors will show the real-life physical traits corresponding to the condition the students were just working on. On many college campuses, cadaver labs are available only to medical school students. This resource is an example of AU’s commitment to providing the most authentic experience possible for students in the College of Health Professions.
Center Faculty and Staff
Jean Foltz, Technician for Medical Simulations
Jean Foltz is an AU biology graduate, and her experiences go back to being a technician in the cadaver lab during her undergraduate studies. Foltz transitioned into a staff position and now works full-time in the cadaver and simulation labs.
Kelli Hembree, Coordinator of the Center for Medical Simulations
Kelli Hembree is an AU grad who has been working for the university since 2013. Hembree provides overall management of the center to assure the best experiences for our students in the College of Healthcare Professions. And if students feel a sense of déjà vu while practicing in the center, it’s because Hembree sometimes serves as the “voice” of the simulators during their interactions.
Krystal McKee, Technician for Medical Simulations
Krystal McKee previously worked as a certified dental assistant in oral surgery before coming to AU. Krystal has experience with private office and hospital operating room procedures. Having worked in those areas provided her with knowledge of medical procedures as well as sterile techniques, medical equipment and supplies.
Dr. Nnenna Igwe, Associate Professor/Anatomist in the Human Dissection Lab
Dr. Igwe has been with AU since August 2018. She graduated from the Abia state University College of Medicine, Nigeria, with MBBS in Medicine and Surgery in 2000. After graduation, she began her practice as a General Physician with emphasis in internal and preventive medicine. In 2002, she moved to the United States to join her spouse. Dr. Igwe also has a degree in Diagnostic Medical Sonography (2009) from Greenville Technical College, SC and a Master’s in Public Health degree (2018) from George Washington University, Washington DC.
To learn more
The Center for Medical Simulations is housed in the Vandiver Building on campus. To find out more about the center, contact Kelli Hembree at (864) 760-1167 or khembree@andersonuniversity.edu.