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National SIM Competitions: SIMWars ACEP15

Posted by Jillian Roberson, Recruitment & Marketing Specialist

11/3/15 3:05 PM

National SIM Competitions: SIMWars ACEP 15

It's been almost a week since the 2015 ACEP Scientific Assembly wrapped up in Boston, MA.  Along with all the educational opportunities, networking event, and fun to be had in the exhibit hall, ACEP15 offered a special simulation event especially for EM residents.

Dr. Julie Sayegh, a member of the SIMWars committee, recently published her recap of the event. We've posted it in it's entirity below, however you can follow her blog at http://jsayeghsimedinem.blogspot.com/ to stay up-to-date on everything she is doing throughout the year.

Dr. Julie Sayegh

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This past week was the national American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) national conference.  It was held in Boston, MA, and each year this conference features a simulation competition for residents called SIMWars.  Residency programs from across the United States submit an application to compete, and 6 programs are chosen.  They are put up against each other for competition, and the best team remains standing at the end.

Participating in ACEP SIMWars was definitely a fun and educational experience, not just for our participants and the audience, but for the simulation guru, such as myself, as well.   Many of the committee members were fellows and simulation directors from programs all over the US, and all of us eager to teach and learn.  This conference would not have been possible to put on without the interdisciplinary teamwork that occurred among us.  From the basics of case creation, to the recruitment of judges, such as the infamous Scott Weingart. ACEP 2015 SIMWars competition, Boston, MA

Yesterday, last years champions, the Harbor-UCLA EM residency, stepped up to the plate to defend their title.  And man did they ever!  They rose to the occasion, and walked away as second time champions!  Go Harbor!

I got involved in the planning several months prior to the conference.  After a conference call with the director, we were divided into teams to create cases that would challenge our resident learners in a fun and exciting way.   With topics like Waterhouse-Friedrechson syndrome, lyme carditis, and Anticholinergic poisoning, we threw everything but the kitchen sink at the residents, and they really rose to the challenge.   Working together with my team was very fun, although at times it proved challenging due to time zone differences across California, Chicago and New York.   Our case and case stimuli were reviewed and then made ready for the competition.

The committee met together the night before the competition to work out logistics, such as who would play certain roles during the cases, in which order we would present them, and what props and tools were needed in order for each case to get carried out appropriately.  We also prepared several informative facts about our cases that could be sent out in tweets using the hastag #simwars.   This would allow anyone searching for this hashtag to find all facts, pictures, and comments placed on the feed by participants, audience members, judges and those of us from the committee.

ACEP 2015 SIMWars committeeWhen the competition began the next morning, the committee was excited to get started (see our happy photo to the right).  We served as confederates for our own and each others cases, playing the role of the nurse, family members, and even that of patients themselves!  Moulage was used to create a realistic feel to the cases, and they were made even more challenging for the residents due to belligerent patients and family members.  Some teams were able to handle this quite well, while others were not so good at it.  Either way, all teams got a really good learning experience, and most importantly, we had a lot of fun doing so.  In addition to the experience, hundreds of tweets were sent out along the way with pertinent information to each case.

Most importantly, participating on the committee has created a network of new friends who also share the same passion.  So as this years competition came to a close, we are all looking forward to returning to SIMWars and helping to make ACEP 2016 an amazing experience in Las Vegas!

Note: This article was used with permission.

Topics: Conferences, Industry Topics