Before the event

DELETE THIS ONCE HOTSPOTS ARE DONE

Administration management

Venue booking admin
The venue or room required for a course must be booked in advance. When a course is developed, specific requirements for venues need to be considered to ensure the objectives of the course can be met.

Facilitators sim
Booking facilitators needed for the course must be done in advance.  Facilitators involved in running courses are often part-time trainers who still practise in their trained field, making it difficult to leave their workplace without adequate notice.

Participants sim
Many courses require a specific number of participants to effectively run a simulation and budgetary constraints may also have bearing on the number of participants required.  Changes to schedules and participants unable to attend on the day are common and contingencies should be planned for.

Budgetary admin
Consideration of the financial management of course development and delivery is necessary during the design phase of the program. Course designers need to understand their budgetary allowances and restrictions, and provide a program that can be delivered within these constraints.  

Catering admin
If your course runs longer than a couple of hours, catering should be arranged and factored into the course costing. Regular breaks should be allowed, with light refreshments provided as well as at least one substantial meal (lunch or dinner).

Learner resources sim
Learner resources include any materials that are provided to participants as training aids throughout the course.  This may include workbooks, diagrams, technical reference material, PowerPoint slides, handouts, etc.

Simulation resources sim
Simulation scenarios can require a wide range of real or simulated clinical equipment and manikins that can be highly expensive and limited in numbers. Confirm you have access to the required equipment you are planning to run the course.

Administration resources admin
These resources are used to collect information on participants or provide them with information and include enrolment forms, indemnity forms, attendance lists, name tags, special needs information, etc.

Gathering information admin

Effective management of any educational event requires collection of relevant information for analysis and legislative purposes. Participant information collected should be processed and filed in accordance with the Privacy Act 1998.

Attendance lists admin
Attendance lists are simply a tool to identify who is present for each educational event and to provide evidence to supervisors or employers of which of their staff attended the training.

Enrolment forms admin
Enrolment forms allow the facilitator and training organisation to gather information on the participant including the qualifications and experience of participants.

Venue preparation sim
Preparing the venue for the delivery of an event needs pre-planning, and consideration should be given for the access and amount of time to set up the venue and test the equipment prior to the event. 

Administration Management  sim
The administration coordination role should manage the welcome participants, ensuring they complete enrolment forms and attendance lists, receive all handouts, etc.

Human resources sim
Participants, technical and subject matter experts, and other people can often arrive late or not at all. Sometimes this situation can’t be avoided, and a decision will need to be made as to whether the program can continue without them. Often facilitators can play the roles of various people in scenarios. For example, a doctor who is used in a scenario may be called to an actual emergency, and a facilitator may have the knowledge and experience to act as the doctor in the scenario.

Technical issues sim
Technical issues can sometimes delay or change your program. You should always check the equipment before delivering a program and seek the assistance of a technical expert to troubleshoot. Do not allow technical issues to affect the overall program. For example, if the AV system is not working during debriefing continue without this, or the emotional state may be lost.

Adverse reactions to scenarios sim
Participants can often have adverse reactions to simulation events. Participants come into the simulation environment with a range of experiences, and can experience an emotional or stress response triggered by the apparent reality of the scenario, or from dealing with other issues such as family or work matters. Identifying potential issues in the pre-course briefing is far better, but this may not be possible in all cases. In these circumstances, where possible, remove the person from the room and provide a one-on-one debriefing session and/or refer them to counselling or psychiatry, if applicable. You may need to call on the assistance of another simulation facilitator to continue with the program for other participants.