The use of simulation to demonstrate hemodynamic response to varying degrees of intrapulmonary shunt

Students in the Medical College of Georgia Nursing Anesthesia Program, Augusta, Ga, use human patient simulation as an avenue for advanced education. Software drives the simulation model through a myriad of programmed patient scenarios. Individually controlled physiologic variables help students understand how to manage a critically ill patient. Similar technology provides students the opportunity to become familiar with pre-clinical and crisis management scenarios, ultimately providing better understanding of perioperative anesthesia care. An interest in the phenomenon of intrapulmonary shunt and an intriguing research article prompted us to develop a simulation study evaluating the effects of ventricular contractility on cardiac output and arterial oxygenation at varying degrees of shunt fraction. We presented a literature review as well as a review on the pathophysiology of intrapulmonary shunt, followed by an explanation of simulation outcomes, to our classmates and faculty. Group discussion of the findings and observation of the variables on the simulation model allow for hands-on teaching and understanding of a difficult topic.