Cambrian College, HSN partner on creating unique medical manikin – December 3

SUDBURY – Cambrian College’s applied research division and the simulation laboratory at Health Sciences North (HSN) have joined forces to create a one-of-a-kind medical manikin to help surgeons prepare for thoracotomies.

A thoracotomy is a major surgical procedure that involves making an incision in the chest wall, through the ribs, to access internal organs, such as the heart and lungs.

Cambrian R&D and HSN have built a state-of-the-art thoracotomy trainer, with unique features not found on other devices on the market, including a full rib cage, and a fluid-filled beating heart.

In the first phase of this project, Cambrian R&D used its industrial grade 3D printer to manufacture a rib cage. One side of the ribcage was printed using rigid plastic for structural integrity, while the other side of the ribcage was printed with flexible resin to simulate surgeons moving ribs out of the way to perform a lateral thoracotomy.

The second phase of the project involved designing a 3D printed heart using flexible resin to accurately simulate the size and realistic texture of a human heart.  The computerized pump system simulates blood flow and produces cardiac pulsations in the heart model that can be both visualized and felt upon accessing the heart within the chest cavity. This sophisticated model is capable of replicating various clinical states, such as a regular perfusing rhythm, asystole (cardiac arrest), or tachycardia.

Thanks to the significant work of Cambrian College, both devices have been retrofitted to one of HSN’s existing medical manikins.

“It is an incredible honour to work with HSN on this thoracotomy trainer and it is very humbling to know that we are playing a role in helping improve surgical training and patient care and potentially saving lives,” says Dr. Mike Commito, Director of Cambrian R&D.  “We have more projects in the works with HSN to improve health care. This is the power of research and innovation, and we have created an amazing R&D ecosystem here in our community.”

A team of students from Cambrian’s Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Electrical Engineering programs helped print the rib cage and heart and develop the pumping system. A student in Graphic Design played a lead role in creating the layout of the on-screen computer interface that controls the pump.

“The collaboration between the HSN Simulation Lab and Cambrian College has led to the development of a high realism trainer that places us at the forefront of healthcare education in Ontario. Cambrian’s capacity to engineer and support the development of an engaging, resettable model has created a platform that allows inter-professional teams to train together on a stressful procedure. This project demonstrates that when we combine clinical expertise with innovative engineering, we directly advance the quality of trauma healthcare available to patients across Northern Ontario,” remarked the HSN Simulation Lab Thoracotomy Research Team.

The thoracotomy trainer is being used in the Simulation Lab located within HSN’s Labelle Innovation and Learning Centre, a 28,000 square foot facility that houses more than 2,800 Learners from 70 post-secondary institutions every year. The Centre is named after Cochrane’s Marcel and Frances Labelle, pioneers of Canadian Industry and owners of M. J. Labelle Co Ltd., who built up communities from Thunder Bay to Moosonee to New Liskeard.

The Simulation Lab at Health Sciences North is a state-of-the-art educational facility designed to improve patient safety and care through advanced healthcare training. It provides health care professionals and learners with a safe, realistic environment to practice procedures, refine skills, and conduct interprofessional team training using the latest in medical simulation technology.

Creation of the thoracotomy trainer was made possible through funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). The project is part of a five-year, $1 million funding allocation to Cambrian R&D from NSERC.

To Learn more about HSN, visit https://hsnsudbury.ca.

To learn more about Cambrian R&D, visit https://cambriancollege.ca/rd.