Looking for ways to teach students empathy for those who face chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and mobility challenges? The COPD and Mobility Challenges Simulation can help. Read on to explore the features of this hands-on learning aid.
COPD Simulation
The COPD and Mobility Challenges Simulation comes with straws and abdominal binders to simulate respiratory difficulties. Students wear the abdominal binders and breathe through the straws to experience shortness of breath, wheezing, chest tightness, and lack of energy. There are enough materials for two students to participate in the simulation at one time.
Mobility Challenges Simulation
Help students experience difficulty ambulating and a shuffling, unsteady gait with folding canes and overshoes. This helps students develop sensitivity toward individuals who have orthopedic or neuromuscular impairments. There are enough materials for four students to experience this simulation at one time.
Nursing Career Scenario Cards
Integrate soft skill instruction into lessons with the COPD and Mobility Challenge’s Nursing Careers: Working with Geriatric Patients Scenario Cards. These workplace scenario cards cover real-world situations in nursing careers when working with geriatric patients. Use these cards to develop soft skills through small-group discussions, as large-group icebreakers, or as individual challenges.
Check out a sample of the cards here.
Soft Skills Activities
Dive even deeper into soft skills practice with the activities in the printable student workbook that comes with the COPD and Mobility Challenges Simulation. Students can use the pages of this workbook to craft written responses to the scenario cards or engage in activities related over 15 different soft skills.
View a sample of the workbook here.
Standards-Based Curriculum
The COPD and Mobility Challenges Simulation comes with the downloadable Working with the Aging: Respiratory Illnesses and Mobility Curriculum. This three-lesson curriculum covers respiratory illnesses of the elderly, mobility challenges with age, and soft skills for working with the elderly. Boasting up to seven hours of teaching content, the curriculum includes presentation slides, student activities, and pre- and post-assessments.
See a sample of the curriculum here.
Additional Resources
- Watch our free, on-demand webinar to see how you can create confident care workers with geriatric training tools
- See how one community college uses empathy simulators to enhance nurse aide training in this customer story
- Read this blog post to explore another learning aid that can help improve students’ geriatric patient care skills
