Dr. Petrosoniak’s primary academic focus is the application of in situ simulation (simulation within the workplace) in trauma and emergency medicine. His work is applied across 3 domains:

1. Patient safety and latent safety threat (LSTs) detection: What does this involve? Dr. Petrosoniak works to improve patient safety using in situ simulation by testing and evaluating existing systems and processes. Think of this like a car manufacturer crash testing a car. Analogously, using in situ simulation, systems and processes are “crash tested” to detect problems and trial solutions. Dr. Petrosoniak was the primary investigator for the TRUST study (Trauma Resuscitation Using in situ Simulation Team Training) which applied a human factors approach to LST identification using in situ simulation. This study utilized a novel method, framework analysis, to categorize and prioritize LSTs.

2. Team-based education and skills training: Dr. Petrosoniak applies team-based training principles within the actual workplace for high performance teams. Additionally, Dr. Petrosoniak uses in situ simulation as a needs assessment to inform future curricula since observing a team function within their actual place of work can quickly identify strengths and weaknesses helpful for curriculum design. Finally, in situ simulation represents an excellent opportunity to train and evaluate performance for rare but life-saving procedures.

3. Design and testing of new clinical infrastructure: The application of simulation (including in situ simulation) in the design and testing of new clinical spaces prior to beginning patient care is novel. Dr. Petrosoniak applies multi-modal, simulation-based methods within a design thinking (link to Wikipedia design thinking page)-informed framework in the design of new clinical infrastructure (e.g. St. Michael’s emergency department, trauma bay and ICU).

Check out some of Dr. Petrosoniak’s work using in situ simulation:

Adapting form to function: can simulation serve our healthcare system and educational needs?

Petrosoniak A, Brydges R, Nemoy L, Campbell D.

Adv Simul (Lond). 2018 Jun 14;3:8.

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Tracking workflow during high-stakes resuscitation: the application of a novel clinician movement tracing tool during in situ trauma simulation

Petrosoniak A, Almeida R, Pozzobon L, Hicks C, Fan M, White K, McGowan M, Trbovich P

BMJ Simulation. 2018. Mar.

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Cricothyroidotomy In Situ Simulation Curriculum (CRIC Study): Training Residents for Rare Procedures

Petrosoniak A, Ryzynski A, Lebovic G, Woolfrey K

Simul Healthc. 2017 Apr;12(2):76-82.

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In situ simulation in emergency medicine: Moving beyond the simulation lab

Petrosoniak A, Auerbach M, Wong AH, Hicks CM

Emerg Med Australas. 2017 Feb;29(1):83-88.

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Study protocol for a framework analysis using video review to identify latent safety threats: trauma resuscitation using in situ simulation team training (TRUST).

Fan M, Petrosoniak A, Pinkney S, Hicks C, White K, Almeida AP, Campbell D, McGowan M, Gray A, Trbovich P.

BMJ Open. 2016 Nov 7;6(11):e013683.

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Simulated emergencies inspire real improvements

By James Wysotski

Toronto, August 10, 2016

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TRUST study: Tracking RN workflow to optimize team efficiency