The simulation lab’s entire floor needed to be covered with Sony PTZ (pan/tilt/ zoom) cameras and Shure microphones so a multiroom or multiarea simulation could be recorded for future playback.
The surgical simulations needed to be streamed live to debriefing rooms, auditoriums or a doctor’s offices. Meanwhile, the client asked for the cameras to be web-controlled so an instructor standing in a debriefing room can take control and zoom in on a specific area.
“Being that the [Sony] cameras output HD/SDI at 720p resolution we needed to get creative in our conversions and cabling to meet these requirements. For the real-time streaming, we utilized VMS client software on local machines trunked through to the AV VLAN and linking with the VMS server,” Peterson says.
“The routing for the B-Line video recording was a bit more challenging. The client requested the ability to start a recording utilizing cameras in one part of the facility but then transition to different rooms; [for instance, from] patient room crashing to O.R. within the facility, while transitioning cameras and microphones from room to room, as the simulation progressed. This was all accomplished through simulation curriculum mapping and intense control system programming.”
Simulation labs have always provided integrators with mission-critical challenges, but Cedars-Sinai seems to have set the bar fairly high for itself in this application.
The goal, as described by Level 3, was to create an environment in which these simulated humans give everyone from medical students to nurses and senior faculty — in fact, the entire hospital workforce — the chance to confront unfamiliar situations in a controlled environment.
“If you’re looking to reduce error, this is an amazing atmosphere in which to train to achieve that goal,” says Metcalfe-Smith.
Asked if he considers it a truly once-in-a-lifetime project with completely unique challenges, “Thanks for saying that,” Peterson laughs. “I do feel that way, and I was completely happy with the outcome.”
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