KNOXVILLE (WATE) - The former Student Health Center on the University of Tennessee campus will take on a new function at the school.
The College of Nursing announced Monday that it is converting the space into a new lab, called the Health and
Information Technology Simulation (HITS) Laboratory, which will be designed to simulate a real working environment for nursing students.
The lab is a joint endeavor between the colleges of
nursing and engineering and will feature simulated learning
experiences and opportunities to explore research
scenarios.
The building will add
more than 7,000 square feet to the nursing college's current space and open the
door to use more cutting-edge technology such as human simulation manikins.
"Research has shown that when students engage in simulated
scenarios in a safe learning environment, they are better prepared to enter into
the work force upon graduation," said Dean Victoria
Niederhauser.
The $1.5 million
project involves renovating the three-story building; the HITS Lab will take two
floors and one floor will house a rare plant herbarium for the Department of
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in the College of Arts and Sciences.
The second floor of the building will
include four patient exam rooms; a pediatric inpatient room; an operating room;
a room that functions as an intensive care unit, medical surgical room and
birthing room; faculty offices; storage space; and lockers.
It will also contain
a debriefing room with an observation and control laboratory where students and
professors can observe how other students are handling simulated scenarios live.
The experiences can be taped so that students can review how they responded to
situations.
The basement level
will contain an apartment with a bedroom, living room and dining room for
simulated learning and collaborative nursing and engineering research projects
to tackle health care challenges.
For example, two professors plan to conduct a study using new smart-home technologies to assist
with independent living for elderly people. These technologies will allow older
adults to live safely in their own homes.
Construction is
slated to begin this fall and be completed in January.
