Transforming Health Professions Education through Simulated & Virtual ‘Realities’.

UNMC is transforming the model for health professions education, training and research through the creation of iEXCEL. Patrons joined us for a panel discussion with Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold and Pamela J. Boyers, Ph.D. to learn more about advancing technology in education including simulated and virtual realities.

IEXCEL is purposefully designed to provide interprofessional and experiential learning opportunities using alternative ‘realities’ including simulation and visualization. By actively participating in hands-on experiences, learners at all levels of training can practice their skills in realistic healthcare environments using life-like mannequins and advanced surgical trainers. 3D, augmented reality / virtual reality and holographic technologies help visualize the workings of the human body and add to the learning experience by stimulating new ways of teaching and learning as well as providing patient care.

About The Visionary Series

The Visionary Series is a unique lecture series hosted during KANEKO’s Reality season. Representing UNMC’s iEXCEL program, this lecture series highlights industry leaders and healthcare professionals who are bringing a bold, game-changing approach to health education through cutting-edge technology. The Visionary Series will examine the interdisciplinary approach to blending science, technology and art and how it transforms human performance and effectiveness in health care. Lecturers will speak to the monumental paradigm shift in communication, global collaboration, and creative endeavors that place humanity on a precipice between knowable truth and sensorial experience – bending the bounds of our preconceived notions of the real and reality.

Mark your calendars for the next lecture in The Visionary Series! 

June 20 // UNMC iEXCEL
July 30 // UNMC Center for Advanced Surgical Technology (CAST)
August 6 // CAE Healthcare
August 13 // AVI-SPL
August 27 // UNMC Mind & Brain Health Labs
September 14 // EON Reality

---

UNMC iEXCEL

The Interprofessional Experiential Center for Enduring Learning (iEXCEL) is a bold and visionary program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center purposefully designed to transform health professions education and offer unprecedented opportunities for research and development. The iEXCEL training model focuses on improving the outcomes of care by emphasizing interprofessional collaboration and experiential learning. With the overall goal of meeting the Triple Aim* of Health Care, iEXCEL offers a wide range of simulation technologies – including augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR).

To be completed in November 2018, the Dr. Edwin Davis & Dorothy Balbach Davis Global Center for Advanced Interprofessional Learning (Davis Global Center) will become the new headquarters for iEXCEL. The unique design of the Davis Global Center promotes interdisciplinary collaboration, team training and the ability to practice the transfer of care throughout the current health care system. Synergistic relationships with academia, industry, government, military and community relations help enrich, inspire and support the future growth of iEXCEL.

---

Dr. Jeffrey P. Gold

Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D., is a nationally recognized leader and tireless advocate for transforming academic medical education. He became chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center on Feb.1, 2014. He also chairs the board of a clinical enterprise that includes UNMC’s primary hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center; its physician practice group, UNMC Physicians; and the Bellevue Medical Center.

As UNMC’s chief executive officer, Dr. Gold is responsible for all aspects of campus administration, including its annual operating budget of more than $640 million, a staff of about 5,000 and its 3,600 students. Additionally, the clinical enterprise has 6,500 employees and an operating budget of more than $1 billion. Dr. Gold also holds a health professions appointment in the department of surgery.

Prior to joining UNMC, Dr. Gold served as Chancellor of the University of Toledo’s health science campus, which includes the Colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Science and Human Service, and Graduate Medical Study. In that role, Dr. Gold had full leadership responsibility of the clinical, education and research programs, the faculty practice plan and the clinical delivery system. As Dean of the University of Toledo’s College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Dr. Gold was responsible for the cultivation and recruitment of faculty, development and implementation of its curriculum and ensuring the highest level of education for its students, residents and faculty.

Prior to joining the University of Toledo, Dr. Gold served at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Weill Cornell Medical College. Dr. Gold graduated from the Cornell University College of Engineering, where he majored in theoretical and applied mechanics. He earned his M.D. from the Weill Cornell College of Medicine and completed his general surgery residency at The New York Hospital and Memorial Hospital, where he served as the administrative chief resident; and his cardiothoracic residency training at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital of Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Gold is a board certified thoracic surgeon and specializes in adult and pediatric cardiac surgery. Dr. Gold serves on over 50 professional committees and over 100 national organizations, volunteer boards, government/public health councils, and industry. He was recently elected to the American Medical Association’s Council on Medical Education and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and has served as president of the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, a national organization devoted to improving the education of resident physicians. Dr. Gold has authored over 200 peer-reviewed articles, 250 national presentations, 40 books and chapters and over 60 invited professorships.

---

Dr. Pamela Boyers

Pamela J. Boyers, Ph.D., is Associate Vice Chancellor for Clinical Simulation for the Interprofessional and Experiential Center for Enduring Learning (iEXCEL), and Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC). Previously, she served as the Executive Director of the Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center (UT-IISC) at the University of Toledo. Prior positions held by Dr. Boyers include: Chief Academic Officer and Executive Director for the Center of Medical Education and Innovation, one of the first interprofessional simulation centers in health care; Designated Institutional Official (DIO) for Riverside, OhioHealth; and Assistant Dean for Students at The Ohio State University College of Medicine.

Dr. Boyers is leading efforts at the University of Nebraska Medical Center to launch the Global Center for Advanced Interprofessional Learning. This new facility will house a transformational program called iEXCEL. UNMC’s vision is to be a global leader in transforming human performance and effectiveness in health care through the application of advanced simulation technology including 3D and Virtual Immersive Reality. Her professional goals are to advance interprofessional education and collaboration to improve the outcomes of patient care. This includes improving the safety and quality of care given to patients and lowering the costs of health care by using simulated environments to improve the performance of health care providers. Dr. Boyers believes in working closely with industry collaborators as well the U.S. military in order to learn from their experiences, thus ensuring best practices related to the application of simulation technologies to improve the outcomes of training and patient care.

With significant experience in designing and operating medical simulation centers, Dr. Boyers is well-published and speaks nationally and internationally about the need to transform the education of health care professionals. Dr. Boyers collaborates with the United States Air Force in research studies and conducting Live Virtual Constructive Exercises for SWAT Teams, First Responders and USAF Para Jumpers. Dr. Boyers also serves as a one of the public members for the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Board of Directors and serves on the Policy Committee for the National Modeling and Simulation Coalition (NMSC).