About the Clinical Simulation Center

The Program is committed to:

• Deliver a simulation environment that is safe and realistic.

• Integrate innovation and evidence based practice into simulation teaching strategies.

• Incorporate state-of the art technologies in clinical education.
• Promote interprofessional education.
• Provide active learning experiences that foster student reflection and self-discovery.
• Produce quality healthcare professionals with enhanced critical thinking abilities, communication and teamwork skills and clinical competence.

The CSC aspires to be the premier, innovative and student-centered simulation program with a keen focus on teaching, research and interprofessional education preparing competent, compassionate, professional clinicians to meet the needs of the local and global community.

• Community: Foster partnerships within and beyond our university community supporting healthcare simulation education for multiple SON, professional programs and healthcare organizations
  
• Innovation: Inspire and support outstanding innovative instruction
  
• Critical thinking: Engage and support students in the discovery and pursuit of clinical reasoning and problem solving competence
  
• Excellence: Use rigorous evidence-based methodologies and models of best practice to develop education strategies that instill competency and inspire professionalism and accountability
  
• Interprofessionalism: Promote interprofessional practice competency domains: Values/Ethics, Roles/Responsibilities, Interprofessional Communication and Teams/Teamwork

The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) representatives met with representatives from regional nursing programs and the Executive Director of the Roanoke Higher Education Center (RHEC) on June 8, 2005 to explore ways of partnering with public and private entities to maximize the use of scarce resources, address the shortage of nursing faculty, and explore alternatives for clinical education of nursing students.

Since then, Radford University, the Jefferson College of Health Sciences, Wytheville Community College, New River Community College, Virginia Western Community College, and Patrick Henry Community College have unanimously endorsed a collaborative effort of nursing educators to develop strategies to address the nursing shortage.

RU School of Nursing assumed leadership in developing the concept and submitting a proposal to the State Council for Higher Education in Virginia (SCHEV) for creating, maintaining and sustaining two Nursing Clinical Simulation Centers (CSC)—one at the Roanoke Higher Education Center and one at the Radford University Corporate Park—as collaborative ventures between nursing education programs and public/private healthcare facilities in this region. With the support of SCHEV, the proposal was included in the Governor’s Budget for the next biennium.

Funding for the project was allocated to Radford University in July 2006.