July 20, 2006 Durban, South Africa TheraSim Presents Research Findings at Annual PEPFAR Conference.
TheraSim, Inc. presented a poster describing the remarkable outcomes of its research delivering simulation-based training to clinicians treating patients with HIV/AIDS in seven sub-Saharan Africa countries in early 2006. The annual conference sponsored by PEPFAR is important because it brings together critical partners from around the world to share research findings and to network on best practices to improve the quality of their services.
TheraSim's poster was based on the delivery of pilot programs in which TheraSim provided CD-based TheraSim Clinical Simulator for up to 100 clinicians over a three-month period in South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. The purpose of the study was to demonstrate impacts on the following goals:
Improvement of competencies of front-line practitioners
Greater visibility and access to training data
Reduction of medical error due to lack of knowledge and experience
Improvement of clinical care with decision support at the point of care
Results on the behavior outcomes of the 100 clinicians registering for the course include the following:
In 48% of cases in which ART was indicated the clinician did order ART, of which 30% had dosing errors
15% used drugs to which the virus was resistant
only 42% used PCP prophylaxis
60% failed to offer pregnancy tests for female patients
40 % failure to order necessary CD4 counts and viral loads
To complete the TheraSim simulation modules, physicians must demonstrate their understanding and competency in these areas with a score of 80% or more. Physician evaluations from these pilot programs included a high degree of satisfaction among the participants (96%); a high rate of completion (64%); and a high rate of improvement once they completed the program (32%).
These results indicate not only a negative evaluation of the training the clinicians have received prior to using the simulator but also a gap analysis for the types and degrees of training required.
Gisela Schneider, Training Director for the Infectious Disease Institute in Kampala, Uganda said, "once adaptations are made, this program can be a real asset to CME and capacity building within the African context."
About TheraSim®, Inc.
TheraSim, Inc. is dedicated to improving patient lives through better support of healthcare professionals with state of the art software tools and services. TheraSim reduces the variability in the delivery of medical treatment and enables healthcare professionals to more rapidly assimilate new medical information and make more effective clinical decisions.
Forward-Looking Statements
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TheraSim, Inc.
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Phone: (919) 321-2708 www.therasim.com info@therasim.com
