Emergent/Critical Care Imaging SIMulation

Meet Your Milestones Using Competency Based Tools

The Emergent/Critical Care Imaging SIMulation (WIDI SIM) is a strategically designed computer aided simulation of an emergency imaging experience that has been rigorously tested and proven to be a reliable and validated means to assess resident preparedness to proceed to the next level of their training – to competently and independently cover Radiology consulting for the hospital, with “phone supervision” from home by attendings, on the overnight shift in the reading room – a specialty specific Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA).


Objective Assessment

The SIM provides objective assessment of resident competence as it relates to:

  • Medical Knowledge (clinical interpretation)
  • Interpersonal & Communication Skills (by specifying action plan, if necessary)

A realistic simulation of an emergent/critical care imaging experiences encompasses:

  • 65 cases of varying difficulty, including normal studies (delivered in continuous workflow style over an 8.5 hour ‘shift’)
  • Interpretive environment with workflow & full image manipulation capability (complete DICOM image sets)
  • Free text responses scored by UF Radiology faculty utilizing a robust grading rubric (no true/false, no multiple choice)

Documented Competency

Using a web-based platform developed by UF Radiology and the ACR, users are required to:

  • Identify the critical finding(s); or identify a normal study
  • Assess the acuity of the finding(s), which includes recommendations for further action, if necessary (clinical response)

Results, Analysis & Review

Once all of a program’s scheduled residents have taken the SIM, submissions are graded by a team of sub-specialists. Each case on the SIM is graded on a ten (10) point scale via a robust grading rubric. Program directors may communicate some or all of the results to their residents.

Program directors will electronically receive:

  • Individual resident results, which includes highlighted areas of strength and weakness and identification of observational vs interpretive errors that is specific to each resident
  • Overall program results, which includes highlighted areas of strength and weakness for the program
  • Comparative data with other institutions (anonymized)

Residents will receive:

  • Access to summary videos for every case included on the SIM, presented by a sub-specialist

Results can be utilized in many ways:

  • Milestone documentation
  • Quality improvement initiatives
  • Patient safety initiatives
  • Curriculum improvement

Inclusivity

All emergent/critical care imaging cases included on each SIM encompass:

  • Varying degrees of difficulty
  • Adult and pediatric cases
  • All sub-specialties (Gastrointestinal; Musculoskeletal; Neuro; Reproductive/Endocrine; Thoracic; Urinary; Vascular) and multi-trauma
  • All modalities (Computed Tomography (CT); Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA); Fluoroscopy; Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI); Magnetic Resonance Angiography (MRA); Nuclear Medicine; Radiography (x-rays); Ultrasound

Confidentiality

The WIDI team maintains strict confidentiality of SIM results at all times. We limit our communications solely to registered program directors and program coordinators. We do no discuss results with individual residents.