In today’s episode, we welcome Michelle, Janine, and Felicity from the Royal Children’s Hospital, Education Hub, Simulation Team. They unpack the power of simulation-based education exploring what it is, how it transforms healthcare learning, and how it helps teams grow through hands-on experience. From practical skills sessions to immersive clinical scenarios, discover how simulation brings education to life; strengthening confidence, teamwork, and communication across healthcare settings.   Resources/References: Brazil, V. A., Speirs, C., Scott, C., Schweitzer, J., & Purdy, E. (2025). Recommendations for the design and delivery of Visually Enhanced Mental Simulation: insights from participants and facilitators. Journal of Healthcare Simulation, 1-11. https://www.johs.org.uk/article/doi/10.54531/NDXV6633   Rudolph JW, Simon R, Dufresne RL, Raemer DB. There's no such thing as "nonjudgmental" debriefing: a theory and method for debriefing with good judgment. Simul Healthc. 2006 Spring;1(1):49-55. doi: 10.1097/01266021-200600110-00006. PMID: 19088574. Simulation Programs : The RCH Simulation Program  

The RCH has adopted a lead preceptor model to help our graduate nurses transition from student to independent clinicians. Hear from 2 of our lead preceptors about the vital role they play in helping our graduate nurses find their feet in a busy working environment.  

In this final episode of our three-part narrative medicine mini-series, join us for a conversation on Jackson’s Opening. A poem by Andy Jackson. We unpack the layers of meaning within our wounds, challenging us to rethink scars and the narratives that emerge from them.  Link to the poem Opening by Andy Jackson.   

Nursing has undergone many changes over the years. In this episode, we celebrate International Nurses Day on May 12th by speaking with two paediatric nurses at different career stages. Carolyn, an experienced nurse, and Mena, a newcomer to the field, will discuss various aspects of nursing, including training, practice, and what it means to be a nurse. Join us as we explore how things have changed in the last 40 years and find the common threads that connect nurses across time. Our guests will share their perspectives on the challenges, rewards, and core values that have shaped nursing through the decades. This episode offers insights into the evolution of this vital profession, honouring the dedication and compassion that nurses bring to their work.

In this episode, we discuss Zdravka Evtimova’s haunting short story, Blood of a Mole. Join us as we reflect on themes of empathy, detachment and burnout. Like in the previous podcast, we'd like you to get involved in the writing component during our chat. This will help you digest the story better as well as give you an opportunity to create your own ending to this part of the story. Link to the short story Blood of a Mole by Zdravka Evtimova. 

Join us for a thought-provoking three-part Teach, Think, Treat podcast series on Narrative Medicine, where storytelling meets the art and science of care. Featuring Dr. Mariam Tokhi and Dr. Fiona Reilly, we explore texts that reveal the power of narrative medicine in healthcare and life.  Link to the poem What the Doctor Said by Raymond Carver. 

Do you need to do a presentation at a conference or at your work? You may be nervous about it, or you may not be. But how are you going to deliver it?   In a previous podcast, I spoke with Dr Andy Tagg, emergency physician from Western Health and co-founder of ‘Don’t Forget the Bubbles’ website about preparing to give a presentation. We talked about the different types of presentations that you can give, the different platforms that you can use and how to prepare effectively.  Well now Andy has returned, as we now need to consider giving the actual presentation. Join us to hear how Andy keeps his audience engaged while still leaving the listener with some food-for-thought whilst also incorporating story into the presentation.   dontforgetthebubbles.com 

Almost all of us would have had to have given a presentation at some point in their career - Perhaps you were a student having to present at university - Maybe you’re early-career and presenting to a select group of colleagues - Or maybe you have or are about to embark on presenting at a national or international conference. Presenting can be daunting to most and there’s a lot to think about when preparing.  A good presentation is one where there is good preparation.  Today we’re joined by Dr Andrew Tagg. Andy is an emergency physician at Sunshine Hospital (Victoria-Australia) with a huge passion for education. He is also one of the co-founders for the ‘Don’t Forget The Bubbles’ website, which is an excellent resource for clinicians around paediatric healthcare.  dontforgetthebubbles.com 

In this episode we delve into what the Education Hub at the RCH has done during this year. From multiple escape rooms to producing regular podcasts and creating new face-to-face conversational education sessions, we’ve done a lot! We ponder the pitfalls of education in a large hospital setting, the power of outreach and how to inspire people to attend education programs in person. Join us as we take you on our 2024 education odyssey at the Education Hub – RCH. 

Whenever you have competing priorities and a heavy workload, it can be difficult to manage your time appropriately. In this episode, Steve chats with Lichin Lim and Gus Benson, who have varying levels of experience in the health-professional world. Lichin and Gus give us some tips on how to manage your time and increase your work efficiency.  

The RCH has been fortunate to have Epic’s Electronic Medical Record since 2016. For a majority of staff it was simply a transition from paper to a computer. However, to get to that point plenty of work had to occur in the background. Lets take a journey back to pre EMR  and hear the thoughts of those working hard to ensure a smooth transition. The EMR has since been rolled out to other hospitals in the Parkville precinct.    I’m joined by Peter Sloman (Parkville ED EMR Lead), Kirsten Davidson (CNC nursing informatics AND Current Dame Elizabeth Scholarship Winner.) and Naomi Bellion (Nursing Informatics CSN).

In this episode, we delve into the transformative power of Narrative Medicine with Dr. Fiona Reilly and Dr. Mariam Tokhi. Discover how Narrative Medicine enhances creativity, self-expression and empathy, offering new perspectives on clinical education, patient care and professional well-being.    Disclaimer: The examples given by the guests may be distressing to some listeners. For support, please contact your local mental health clinician or support service for advice. 

Student clinical assessments come in all shapes and sizes and largely depend on 3 main factors: The healthcare discipline, the university that the student attends and the year level of the student. In this episode, Andrew Kilgour and Giulia Mccorkell from RMIT university talk about how they have devised a multi-disciplinary assessment framework and how it can replace the current assessment systems for all healthcare disciplines.  

Imagine being a new or undergraduate nurse and being placed in an unfamiliar environment. In an operating theatre, you’re aware of the different scrubs, the theatre cap and to not touch any of the drapes, but what are those “tools” the surgeon is holding. Or why is everyone counting to 5?   In this episode we have Clinical Nurse Educator Carolyn Sahhar who will guide us through the maze which is perioperative care. 

The role of the Clown Doctor is to improve the hospital experience for everyone and they do this in so many ways. In this episode, we talk with David Symons from The Humour Foundation and Amy Gray, head of the Department of Paediatrics from the University of Melbourne. We discuss the role of Clown Doctors and integrate joy into a paediatric setting. David and Amy also introduced a novel program that is designed to impact health professionals and the way they approach their relationships with patients, families and colleagues. 

This is the first in a series of podcasts where we explore the career journeys of different health professionals. Listen in for some sage advice and be inspired by the potential of your future in health care.     In this episode we chat with Jo Miller, Director of Quality at The Royal Children’s Hospital. Starting from her early days here at The RCH Jo’s career seen her traverse the public, private and government health sectors to come full circle with her recent return to RCH. She has always held onto her passion for nursing and caring for others. It a great example of the diversity of options a career in health and particularly nursing can offer.     This story is presented in recognition of international nurses’ day which is celebrated every year on 12th May.    

Escape rooms are becoming increasingly popular as an interactive and engaging tool in healthcare teams. Participating in them can be fun – creating them, just as rewarding. The RCH Education Hub’s Lichin, Benny and Steve talk about their journey in creating an escape room for campus staff, how long it took and how it drove them to create another 2 escape rooms!  

Today I’m joined by Anastazia Drake. Anastazia is a former patient of RCH, has spent a lot of time over the years as both an inpatient and outpatient and has experienced the care provided by the RCH team. She’s here today to talk a little about her experiences and how you, as a healthcare professional, can work effectively in a patient centered care environment. 

In this part 2 of the simulation series, we chat with Kim Price and Dr Dom Cincotta about their experience with in-situ simulation and how they have used it to improve the care delivered to patients suffering from anaphylaxis. 

Simulation has many roles in clinical healthcare. It is used as a tool for education and training, as well as testing systems, pathways and equipment. In part 1 of this series on simulation, we talk with Dr Rebecca Szabo, who introduces the concept of simulation and explains its benefits and challenges.