Simulated Hospital Grand Opening
Sep 20, 2016After nearly five years of planning and renovation, the Simulated Hospital at Rockingham Community College was officially opened on Tuesday, Sept. 20.
The Simulated Hospital is located in the N. Jerry Owens Jr. Health Sciences Building, on the RCC campus at 562 County Home Road.
RCC’s programs of study housed in the facility include nursing, surgical technology, respiratory therapy, phlebotomy, and emergency medical technology. The building features examination rooms, a trauma and emergency department, skills labs, patient care areas, ICU/birthing center, and a surgery/trauma department site. An atrium area is specifically designed for use by students and the community. There are quiet spaces for study groups in addition to areas where students can review and critique just-completed patient scenarios.
“One of the biggest challenges that educators have is providing a hands-on training environment for our students. Traditionally, health sciences students are placed in a variety of hospital and doctor’s office settings in an effort to have them experience a wide variety of patient care; we call these clinical experiences,” explained RCC’s president, Dr. Mark Kinlaw. “Where previously our students worked in isolation and in a variety of buildings across campus, now students from all disciplines will come together, just like a real hospital, to provide medical care. We at RCC are dedicated to providing the best education possible for our students, and this simulated hospital will help us prepare students for success.”
The building was constructed in 1995 as a multi-purpose facility featuring a child development center, senior center, and classrooms and labs for Early Childhood and health sciences programs. In 2011, college trustees voted to renovate the building to include a simulated hospital — a state-of-the-art facility where students benefit from an interdisciplinary approach to health education. Students use a variety of low- and high-fidelity programmable mannequins, video equipment, and computers to experience realistic case scenarios and develop their skills in a safe setting.
To support the effort, the Rockingham Community College Foundation launched a drive to raise funds for construction and equipment. The “Campaign for Advanced Healthcare Education” raised $3.8 million of the total project’s $4.6 million target; a portion of the funds raised were from donors who transferred their gifts from a project to construct a civic center on campus; college trustees voted to suspend that project.
A $1.27 million contribution by the Reidsville Area Foundation enabled the simulated hospital project to be reduced from three phases to one, saving time and dollars. A number of other organizations, businesses, and individuals have contributed to the project. The fundraising campaign continues, with donations going to provide equipment. Individuals and firms interested in sponsorship opportunities are invited to contact Cindy Sarwi in the RCC Development Office.
The building is named after Dr. N. Jerry Owens, Jr., RCC’s second president, who served as president from 1983 to 1996. He later served as a trustee.
Clark, Patterson & Lee, an architectural firm with offices in Raleigh and Charlotte, served as project architect. H.M. Kern, of Greensboro, was the general contractor.
#
