Teaching and Learning Through Simulation

Clinical Skills Centre | Edinburgh Medical School

Simulation-based education is an integral part of clinical training at Edinburgh Medical School. By recreating realistic clinical situations in a safe and supportive learning environment, simulation enables students to develop practical skills, apply clinical knowledge and build confidence without compromising patient safety.

The Clinical Skills Centre supports a progressive approach to clinical education, combining practical skills training, simulated patient interactions and immersive clinical scenarios. These approaches allow students to develop both the technical and non-technical skills required for effective clinical practice.

Undergraduate Medical Education

The Clinical Skills Centre supports practical training throughout the undergraduate MBChB programme. Teaching is structured to reflect students’ developing knowledge and experience, progressing from foundational clinical skills to more complex clinical scenarios and team-based learning.

Our teaching approaches include:

Mannequin-Based Simulation

High-fidelity and mid-fidelity manikins provide realistic opportunities for students to practise clinical assessment and the management of deteriorating patients in a controlled environment.

Activities include:

• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and emergency interventions
• Assessment and initial management of acutely unwell patients
• Recognition of clinical deterioration
• Interpretation of clinical observations and monitoring

Simulation allows students to apply clinical knowledge, develop decision-making skills and reflect on their performance before transferring their learning into clinical practice.

Standardised Patients

Trained standardised patients provide opportunities for students to develop clinical communication and consultation skills through realistic patient interactions.

Students practise:

• Establishing rapport and building therapeutic relationships
• Taking clinical histories and gathering relevant information
• Explaining clinical findings and management plans
• Communicating effectively and compassionately with patients

These sessions support the development of professional communication skills and help prepare students for the complexities of real patient encounters.

Learning with Real Patients

Where appropriate, teaching involving patients with relevant clinical signs and symptoms provides students with valuable opportunities to develop their clinical examination and communication skills.

This experience helps students connect theoretical knowledge with clinical findings while developing a professional, patient-centred approach to assessment and care.

Task Trainers and Procedural Skills

Task trainers provide focused, practical opportunities to develop procedural skills through repetition and supervised practice.

Training may include:

• Intravenous cannulation
• Venepuncture
• Arterial blood gas sampling

This approach enables students to develop familiarity, accuracy and confidence in performing clinical procedures before undertaking them in clinical settings.

Virtual Reality and Immersive Simulation

Virtual reality (VR) and immersive simulation technologies provide innovative approaches to experiential learning. These technologies enable students to engage with interactive clinical environments, explore realistic scenarios and apply their knowledge in ways that complement traditional teaching methods.

The Centre’s immersive simulation facilities, including new Samsung immersive technology, expand the opportunities available for scenario-based learning and the development of clinical decision-making, situational awareness and teamworking.

Low-Fidelity Simulation and Non-Technical Skills

Low-fidelity simulation provides a flexible and accessible approach to developing the non-technical skills that underpin safe clinical practice.

Through structured activities and scenario-based exercises, students develop:

• Communication
• Teamwork and leadership
• Decision-making
• Situational awareness
• Collaborative problem-solving

These activities complement technical skills training by focusing on the human factors that influence clinical performance and patient safety.

High-Fidelity Immersive Simulation

High-fidelity simulation brings together technical clinical skills, clinical reasoning and non-technical skills within realistic, evolving scenarios. These sessions enable students to respond to changing clinical situations, prioritise actions and work effectively as part of a team.

In Year 4, students are introduced to non-technical skills through Interprofessional Education (IPE), working collaboratively with nursing students. This learning is developed further through small-group, face-to-face teaching in Years 5 and 6.

Key learning themes include:

• Complex clinical communication
• Recognition of and response to changing situations
• Situational awareness and prioritisation
• Clinical decision-making
• Teamwork, leadership and collaboration

These sessions are designed to provide a supportive, non-assessed learning environment in which students can practise, reflect on their performance and develop their capabilities without the pressure of formal assessment.

Independent Student Practice

The Clinical Skills Centre supports continued skills development beyond scheduled teaching through opportunities for independent practice.

Following compulsory teaching, students can book independent practice sessions through the Tutorial Booking System (TuBS). These sessions allow students to consolidate their learning, repeat clinical procedures and practise individually or with fellow students using the Centre’s simulation equipment.

Book independent practice: Tutorial Booking System (TuBS)

Ward-Based Clinical Skills Sessions

Ward-based clinical skills sessions provide additional opportunities for students to develop practical skills within a clinical environment, supported by clinical staff.

These sessions are currently available to Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 medical students, as well as Year 3 HCP-Med students.

Sessions are delivered across three NHS Lothian sites:

• Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh: WardCSkills.RIE@ed.ac.uk
• St John’s Hospital: warscskills.sjh@ed.ac.uk
• Western General Hospital: wardcskills.WGH@ed.ac.uk

From Simulation to Clinical Practice

Simulation-based education provides a foundation for developing the knowledge, technical skills and professional behaviours required for clinical practice. By combining realistic scenarios, practical repetition, feedback and reflection, the Clinical Skills Centre supports students in translating learning into clinical experience.

Our approach promotes continuous development, effective teamwork and patient-centred care, helping prepare future doctors to deliver safe, effective and compassionate healthcare.