Sentinel U®, a provider of web-based simulation education technology solutions for nursing schools, hospital systems and healthcare professionals, has upgraded its award-winning public health virtual simulation to an even more user-friendly and intuitive learning experience. Designed for nursing learners and educators, Sentinel City® v.5 offers a full suite of engaging and authentic scenarios intended to challenge nursing students and prepare them to be successful in their academic studies.
The enhanced online learning platform incorporates virtual urban locations, data, and demographics designed to help nursing students develop advanced observation techniques, cultivate critical thinking skills, and practice professional caring of a patient population – all in a risk-free learning environment.
"We are committed to furthering the role of virtual simulation education and Sentinel City® v.5 will solidify our place as a market leader," said Jeffrey Caplan, president of Sentinel U®. "The upgraded technology and additional content offers an unparalleled user experience, incorporating more than 100 comprehensive data sets compiled from real-world analytics community public health nurses encounter daily."
Sentinel City® v.5 provides students with immersive encounters in which to practice and assess their community health nursing skills – but at a much deeper level. Students will now interact with ten additional citizens and communicate with two more key informant avatars as they enter and explore new locations within the city, as well as brand-new suburban neighborhood. Sentinel City® v.5 boasts diverse neighborhoods that provide learners the unique opportunity to interact with a wider demographic of patients – from geriatric to pediatric – and from different socio-economic levels. The result is a significantly enhanced community health learning program. Navigating these experiences has also improved. A new narrated bus tour, similar to a hop on-hop off bus tour, offers nursing students the opportunity to explore different businesses, services, and neighborhoods while engaging with citizens and key informant avatars.
Nursing educators will appreciate the new web-based, searchable assignment catalog. Sentinel City® v.5 includes intuitive enhancements that allow educators to seamlessly align or adapt assignments to meet specific course outcomes or competencies. With a 34 percent increase in activities, Sentinel City® v.5 provides instructors with a plethora of community health experiences in areas such as physical environment, health and social services, safety, transportation, education, recreation, government, and communication.
"Knowing our simulation commonly maps to Community or Population Health Nursing courses, our team has identified crosswalks to ensure a seamless transition to the new version," said Dr. Laura Gonzalez, vice president of clinical learning resources at Sentinel U®.
Sentinel U® will host a webinar on Tuesday, August 24 at 11 a.m. EDT, where an expert panel will explain the virtues of the new version, outline available curriculum crosswalks, and detail Sentinel U®'s support for nursing educators throughout the transition process. Dr. Gonzalez will be joined by Sentinel U® Director of Empowered Classroom Melissa Penner, DNP, RN, CNE, and Director of Nursing Content Sabrina Cook, DNP, RN. The trio will answer questions about the new content and how it aligns with current curriculum standards.
Sentinel U® is now available at the same subscription rate as Sentinel City® v.3 – $99 per student. Bundling options with additional simulations, such as Sentinel Town®, begin at only $119 per student.
ABOUT Sentinel U®
Sentinel U®, formerly Healthcare Learning Innovations, strives to meet the evolving needs of healthcare education and training by providing simulation-based technologies and digital learning tools. Sentinel U, a division of American Sentinel College of Nursing & Health Sciences at Post University, with 20 years of online education experience, offers virtual simulations and clinicals for nursing degree programs, hospital systems and healthcare facilities around the world.