MESA, Ariz. (June 2, 2008) -- To feed a demand for better nursing education, the Banner Baywood campus has recently opened a miniature simulation lab, complete with high-tech mannequins named Frank Enstein and Charlie Brown.

The sim lab will allow new and current nurses to learn new skills on the “patient,” including responding to a code, treating a heart attack and inserting an IV. It is part of a major Banner Health initiatve to have simulation education and training available for all of its healthcare providers.

The sim lab:

• Serves 15 to 20 students at a time
• Features audio/video equipment for videos
   or PowerPoint presentations
• Has one bed and one gurney, two adult-sized mannequins and a nurse’s station with four computers

The lab will serve nurses from Banner Baywood Medical Center and Banner Heart Hospital.

About Banner Heart Hospital and Banner Baywood Medical Center:
Banner Heart Hospital is one of the largest free-standing heart hospitals in the nation. It has been named twice as one of the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals® for cardiovascular care by Thomson healthcare business. This annual award for cardiovascular services objectively measures performance on the key criteria at the nation’s top performing, acute-care hospitals. It is on the same campus as Banner Baywood Medical Center, a 332-bed facility, also facing significant growth. Its recent $97 million expansion added a seven story, 123-bed tower to this campus. Both hospitals have first-class physicians working with an experienced staff provide the latest medical technology in an environment of clinical excellence, compassion and healing. They are part of Banner Health, a nonprofit hospital system that is Arizona’s largest health care provider and second largest private employer.

Contact: Lindsay M. Butler at (480) 321-4978.

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