The Clinical Learning Laboratory gives GA-PCOM students the opportunity to practice clinical skills, develop crucial communication abilities and demonstrate that they have achieved clinical competence. Through the use of standardized patients and human patient simulators, the lab allows students to practice with patients in a supportive environment prior to treating real patients. Patient conditions and problems can be developed and altered to suit educational objectives and allow students to successfully and confidently transition into practice.
Standardized patients are trained to document the skills of students and to provide honest and constructive feedback to them based on clinical performance. In addition, student sessions with the standardized patients are videotaped for evaluation and review by faculty and students.
The lab also utilizes four state-of-the-art human patient simulators. Nicknamed STAN, for "standard man," two of the human patient simulators are full-body mannequins that breathe, have heartbeats, pupils that react to light and medications, pulses that can be felt at five locations and lung sounds. They can also talk. STAN can be programmed to simulate almost any medical situation that might occur and accurately mirrors human responses to medical procedures. NOELLE and HAL are birthing and neonatal simulators designed to provide a complete birthing experience before, during, and after delivery.