Today, we began our day with a visit to the Basurto Hospital and listened to presentations on the healthcare system in Spain. It was really great to talk to their nursing staff, as well as one of their biomedical engineers, to hear about how the hospital setting works here. I found it interesting that they focus much more than we do on primary health care with consistent primary physicians in order to teach about and prevent illnesses before they arise or become chronic. With more consistent health care, conditions can be treated sooner and more efficiently, which is not feasible for the U.S. with so many health disparities based on income and geographic location. The universal health care they have in Spain is the reason so many more people are seeking primary health care.

My favorite part of today was seeing the virtual reality simulations. This is something that I’ve heard about implementing in healthcare systems all over the world, but I had never actually seen in person. This simulation was a virtual triage center in an emergency department. The person acting in the simulation was given a patient from 75 different scenarios and treated that patient with a variety of questions until making a final decision on the extent of the care they needed. They use this simulation to train nurses/other healthcare professionals and they have other simulations for surgeons to practice their technique or consult with other surgeons on how best to perform on a 3D model. I found this simulation to be fascinating, and a virtual training system like this could be a huge game changer in the world of healthcare. It essentially eliminates the need for professor supervision in Sim Labs and allows students to practice whenever they please, as well as work collaboratively. The real-life feeling of the virtual reality could also calm student anxiety about treating real patients. I hope this technology continues to develop in our university.