Mannequin or standardized patient: participants' assessment of two training modalities in trauma team simulation.

Background: Trauma team training using simulation has become an educational compensation for a low number of severe trauma patients in 49 of Norway's 50 trauma hospitals for the last 12 years. The hospitals' own simple mannequins have been employed, to enable training without being dependent on expensive and advanced simulators. We wanted to assess the participants' assessment of using a standardized patient instead of a mannequin.

Effects of nationwide training of multiprofessional trauma teams in norwegian hospitals.

Background: Norway has 50 trauma hospitals serving a geographically disperse population (4.6 million) and many have low trauma case loads. We showed that personnel find functioning as a team especially challenging, and developed a 1-day training course, arranged locally at each hospital, focused on team training in communication, leadership, and cooperation during simulated patient treatment.

Training multiprofessional trauma teams in Norwegian hospitals using simple and low cost local simulations.

Context & Objective: Norwegian hospitals' trauma teams are seldom exposed to severely injured patients. We developed and implemented a one-day multi-professional training course for hospital trauma teams in order to improve communication, cooperation and leadership.

Methods: Training courses were held in 28 Norwegian hospitals with learning objectives: improved team work, common understanding of treatment priorities and principles, communication skills, and threats to efficient communication.

[Simulation--an efficient way of learning in graduate and continuous medical education].

Background: Different types of simulators and simulated situations are being used in the training of doctors. Even though simulation as a learning method has been used in various areas such as aviation and oil industry, it has only recently been applied to medical education. Simulation seems to be very well suited in training for and building skills and experience with life threatening situation that are seldom seen.

[50th anniversary--cheers to the internship?].

This year the mandatory internship scheme for Norwegian doctors celebrates its 50th anniversary. Internships were instituted by a Decree in Council in 1954 and implemented the year after. History shows that there has been and still is a lack of commitment to the organisation as well as the content of internships.

[Self-reported level of skills in practical procedures following internship in general practice].

Background: Previous reports have demonstrated variable and partly insufficient skills in standard practical procedures among young doctors who have served their internship. The present study examines the development of interns' self-reported level of skills in practical procedures during internship in general practice in relation to quantity and quality of supervision, gender and the size of the community they served in.

Material And Methods: Between 1996 and 1999, all doctors going through internships in Norway were asked to indicate their level of skills in 88 practical clinical procedures before and after internship in general practice.