Phoebe unveils mobile simulation center at Merry Acres Middle School

ALBANY – The health care crisis that plagues the nation will not get better, officials concede, until the barriers that have kept many students from considering the field as a career are removed.

Phoebe Putney Health System, which itself is short some 175 nurses, took a step toward removing one of the primary barriers that keeps local students from the field  – access – Friday with the unveiling of the hospital system’s Simulation & Innovation Mobile Unit at Merry Acres Middle School.

The $1.2 million unit, which includes the “Phoebe Cloud Clinic” video game created specifically for the center, a pair of AI-powered mannequins, a simulation room for realistic health care scenario training, a stop-the-bleed station, a dozen or so mannequins for CPR training, and a debrief room where students and staff can discuss their performances following a scenario, was primarily funded by a federal Health Resources and Services Administration grant secured by 2nd District Congressman Sanford Bishop.

Phoebe officials worked with the Dougherty County School System to set up the center’s unveiling Friday at Merry Acres Middle Magnet School, where around 50 students in the school’s Medical Arts program toured the center.

“The purpose of this unit is to inspire young people to pursue careers in health care and to expose students to opportunities they may not have ever thought or known about,” Tracy Suber, Phoebe’s vice president for education and talent acquisition, said before the kickoff of a brief ceremony to introduce the center to Merry Acres students, local officials and community supporters.

“What we’re doing here today – and what we will continue to do with the Sim Center – is plant seeds. The earlier we can get young people interested in health care, the more likely they will choose to pursue a career in the field.”

That was the case for the Merry Acres students who toured the facility Friday and took part in exercises utilizing the various stations and equipment.

“We’re proud to be selected to be a part of today’s program,” eighth-grader Caleb Williams said as he and seventh-grader Chasity Peters served as guides during the presentation. “This is something that will help those of us who are interested in health care.”

A pair of DCSS board members, Carolyn Hand and Geraldine West-Hudley, were on hand for the unveiling of the project.

“This is awesome,” Hand said. “This program will help our students who are considering entering the medical field know exactly what they need to know to get started. It’s a great program, and it’s great that Phoebe is working with us to bring this to our young students.”

Added West-Hudley: “This is the kind of thing we want to expand on in the system, to show our students the possibilities that are available to them.”

After remarks from Merry Acres Principal Calvin Poole, Phoebe CFO Brian Church, Bishop’s Chief of Staff Kenneth Cutts and Suber, students and event attendees toured the Simulation & Innovation Mobile Unit.

“So many students, especially those in rural areas, do not have the opportunity to visit our facilities and learn more about the potential for careers in the health care field,” Suber said. “The idea behind the mobile unit is for us to get out to the schools, take the information to them.

“This age – middle school – is the perfect age to reach out to students, to pique their interest while they’re young. We already have four things scheduled – including an event at Albany State University, a health care summit in Tifton – and what we hope to do is take the unit to all of the middle schools, high schools and colleges in the area.”

Suber said a full-time driver for the mobile unit and nurse educators from a team of 28 take part in each recruitment session.

Schools interested in having the Phoebe team visit are encouraged to call the hospital’s Simulation Center at (229) 312-1371.

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