eClinic: An Innovative Technology for Clinical Laboratory Sciences Education

描述（由申请人提供）：临床实验室（CL）从业人员在疾病、创伤和疾病的检测、诊断和治疗中发挥着至关重要的作用。事实上，医疗保健从业人员在做出医疗决策时使用的信息中有70%来自病历。然而，目前训练有素的CL技术人员和技术人员严重短缺，预计2012年有36%的CL职位空缺空缺。此外，由于运营费用高、招聘和留住教师困难等原因，CL课程正在大量关闭。仅在过去十年中，超过三分之一的CL培训项目关闭，许多CL学术项目陷入混乱，许多教师离开了这个行业。雅典娜集团公司（Athena）与摩根州立大学（MSU）密切合作，提出了eClinic，这是一种基于技术的中学后CL教育方法，旨在解决CL短缺问题。eClinic技术由雅典娜在密歇根州立大学的实践教师和临床医生的指导和密切合作下开发，将使用虚拟湿实验室和先进的嵌入式学习策略提供真实的CL教育活动，更好地为学生的专业实践和教师（职前和在职）资格认证做好准备。eClinic项目的具体目标是开发一种技术，以增强CL学术课程，吸引学位候选人进入这些课程，更好地为学生做好准备并验证CL讲师，并降低专业培训的成本。本着这种精神，eClinic将作为一种有效、经济、可持续的教育软件产品开发，针对2年制和4年制大学的CL课程，最初（第一阶段）将重点放在密歇根州立大学的学士学位CL课程上。eClinic将利用雅典娜在开发虚拟学习环境方面的领导地位和密歇根州立大学的CL教育专业知识。eClinic技术将由高质量的3-D动画模拟、虚拟仪器以及对探究和基于场景的学习系统的深入理解驱动。第一阶段的eClinic技术将为学生和教师提供可演示的学习模块，用于现有的实验室密集型MSU CL临床微生物学，临床化学和免疫血液学课程。eClinic的主要长期目标是为学生和教师在CL领域的成功职业生涯做好准备，为公共卫生提供定量和定性的好处。在商业上，ecclinic的影响力将会

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Clinical laboratories (CL) practitioners play a crucial role in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, trauma, and maladies. In fact, 70% of the information used by health care practitioners in making medical decisions comes from the CL. However, there is today a significant shortfall of trained CL technologists and technicians, with 36% of the CL job openings in 2012 expected to go unfilled. Moreover, CL academic programs are shutting down in great numbers, citing high operating costs and difficulty in recruiting and retaining faculty. Over one-third of CL training programs closed in the past decade alone, with many CL academic programs in shambles and many faculty leaving the profession. The Athena Group, Inc. (Athena), in close collaboration with Morgan State University (MSU), proposes eClinic, a technology-based approach to post- secondary CL education that addresses the CL shortfall problem. The eClinic technology, developed by Athena under the guidance of and in close collaboration with practicing faculty and clinicians at MSU, will deliver authentic CL educational activities using virtual wet labs and advanced, embedded learning strategies that better prepare students for professional practice and faculty (pre-service and in-service) for credentialing. Specific objectives of the eClinic project are to develop a technology that enhances CL academic programs, attracts degree candidates into these programs, better prepares students and validates CL instructors, and reduces the cost of professional training. In that spirit, eClinic will be developed as an effective, affordable, and sustainable educational software product targeting CL programs, both 2-year and 4-year colleges, with an initial (Phase I) focus on the MSU baccalaureate CL program. eClinic will leverage Athena's demonstrated leadership in developing virtual learning environments and MSU's CL education expertise. The eClinic technology will be driven by high-quality 3-D animated simulations, virtual instrumentation, and an intimate understanding of inquiry- and scenario-based learning systems. The Phase I eClinic technology will result in demonstrable learning modules for students and faculty for use in existing laboratory-intense MSU CL clinical microbiology, clinical chemistry, and immunohematology courses. The principal long-range eClinic goal is to prepare students and faculty for successful careers in CL with a product that provides quantitative and qualitative benefits to public health. Commercially, eClinic's reach will be extended beyond CL to support traditional biology and chemistry. In addition, joint Athena/MSU distance learning initiatives will also expand eClinic's market. Finally, eClinic will be developed as an instrument training tool for the CL industry. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The proposed eClinic project advances the cause of public health by enhancing clinical laboratory (CL) academic programs, attracting degree candidates into these programs, better preparing students and validating CL instructors, and reducing the costs of professional training.