FPTC unveils ambulance simulator

CHIPLEY
– The Florida Panhandle Technical College unveiled their new ambulance
simulator at a ribbon cutting on Monday, August 9. 

The simulator was purchased with Governors Emergency Education Relief (GEER) grant funding. The ambulance simulator cost $80,000 along with an additional $17,000 for a fully functioning trauma patient simulator named HAL. 

Both simulators are a boon for FPTC with the ambulance being the only one in the area. The ambulance has airbags underneath to simulate real roads and real life conditions that students will face on the job. HAL has the capability to do all the things the human body does and both record to a DVR and will track each student’s progress to help them learn from mistakes. 

Having the simulators helps students prepare for practical and clinical training at North Florida Community Hospital that is required to gain their certificates.  

Public Safety Coordinator Brandon Stevenson says it will take training to the next level. “Having these tools will enable us to teach our students in a way we couldn’t before,” said Stevenson. “This provides real time training with state-of-the-art equipment.”