By Francis Scarcella
LEWISBURG — The big question is whether “Sim Man” will feel well enough to welcome visitors when the Central Susquehanna LPN Career Center cuts the ribbon at its new location from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday.
The center was formerly in Sunbury’s Fourth Street Plaza, and, since Dec. 16, has been educating future nurses at 1339 St. Mary St., Lewisburg.
A need for more space prompted the move, said Juli Corrigan, director of educational initiatives for the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit.
“We found this place and we ran a survey with students to see if the move from Sunbury to Lewisburg would be a good idea,” she said. “They all agreed it would be and now we have so much more space and the students seem to love it.”
Wendy Erb, course instructor, said she is excited for the change because she can now put to good use “Sim Man.”
“We had ‘Sim Man’ before,” Erb said, “but we were unable to use the mannequins to the fullest extent because of space issues. So this is great because we can teach a lot more.”
“Sim Man” is a mannequin that lies in a hospital bed and speaks, breathes and tells future nurses about his symptoms so the proper treatment can be given.
“I stand behind the wall and I make ‘Sim Man’ do various things,” Erb said. “Then the students react to the problem and adjust accordingly. And if they do the right things, then ‘Sim Man’ will get better. If not, he takes a turn for the worse.”
In the previous building, nursing students were able to see what it was Erb was going to do next with “Sim Man.”
“Now that they can’t see me,” Erb said. “It makes for a better learning process. It’s real life.”
Students can also watch emergency situations live via closed-circuit television.
“We have monitors in classrooms so that other students can watch and learn from what the people in the emergency setting are doing,” Erb said. “It’s just a good learning experience.”
Students say they love the new facility and are learning more because they can do more.
“The new building is awesome,” said student Wendy Kirchner, 25, Selinsgrove.
“It’s just bigger and much more functional and it’s just a great program.”
Amanda Fritz, 26, Northumberland, agreed.
“I enjoy learning here and working on Sim Man because it’s like a real-life situation,” she said. “We definitely are learning a lot.”
The LPN Center is operated by the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit and public relations manager Jennifer Spotts is proud of the program.
“This is great because of all the improvements that were made,” she said. “Students come from all over and when they graduate, they seem to stay in the area, which is a good thing.”
For more information, call the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit at 523-1155.
