13 May 2011

Pupils to get hands on experience of surgery

Photo opportunity: 1pm on Monday, 16th May at the Cuschieri Skills Centre, Level 5, Ninewells Hospital. Pupils will get the chance to try a surgery simulator.

Pupils from Dundee's St Ninians Primary School will have the chance to practice keyhole surgery when they visit Ninewells Hospital next week.

They won’t be practising their skills on a live patient, however, but will instead be having a go on a virtual reality keyhole surgery simulator used to train surgeons. The Primary 7 pupils will be visiting the Clinical Skills Centre and Cuschieri Skills Centre at Ninewells Hospital on Monday, 16th May as part of a project exploring Dundee's global influence.

The children chose to visit Ninewells due to the impact it has in training doctors who go on to work around the world. They will learn about the importance of maintaining good health and take part in a number of hands-on interactive sessions.

The University of Dundee’s Medical School, based at Ninewells, graduates around 160 doctors a year and is consistently rated as one of the best in the UK.

Trainee doctors from around the world are drawn to Dundee for its reputation as a centre of excellence, and the St Ninians pupils will have the opportunity to take part in some of the exercises designed to help medical students and qualified doctors and surgeons learn their profession.

'The pupils will have a great chance to find out what doctors do and the training they go through as well as learning practical lessons about health,' said Dr Lysa Owen, Clinical Lecturer at the Medical School.

'There will be a number of sessions teaching them about the heart and lungs and how they can stay healthy as well as explaining a bit more about what being a doctor or nurse means. They will meet 'Simman' our high fidelity simulator- a life sized mannequin who can talk, breath and even vomit! Hopefully one or two of them might be inspired to go into the healthcare professions themselves.

'They will also find out about surgical skills and have the chance to practice their skills using a virtual reality simulator that is used in the training of surgeons.'

The pupils will be at the Clinical Skills Centre from 9.30-11am and at the Surgical Skills Centre from 11am-1.30pm.

For media enquiries contact:
Grant Hill
Press Officer
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384768
E-MAIL: g.hill@dundee.ac.uk
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