"The Fairbanks Foundation is pleased to help support this major new facility as part of our continuing effort to bolster the infrastructure underlying Indianapolis health-related initiatives," said Bikoff. "The building will serve as a gateway to the IU School of Medicine, providing new facilities for administrative offices and much-needed space for educating the state's future doctors, nurses and other health-care professionals."

The state-of-the-art simulation center will offer clinical training for IU nursing, medical and allied health students, clinical orientation of Clarian nurses, simulation training for staff physicians and residents, as well Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) training of students and employees. It is expected that thousands of students and professionals will be trained annually at the center. The simulation center will enhance patient care, patient safety and clinical outcomes.


A skills learning area and simulation areas including an operating room, emergency room, patient care room, obstetrical rooms, intensive care unit rooms and debriefing rooms, and other training and classrooms will be included in the center to provide real-time virtual training for clinicians.

"This is a wonderful, collaborative enterprise that will provide a wealth of experience for nursing students with direct benefit to patients," said Dr. Broome. "The experience of working together with students from other health disciplines to solve patient problems will influence the attitudes and behaviors of both nurses and physicians for years to come.

"Each discipline brings its own perspective and sees the patient through a different lens. It is through learning how to communicate clearly and work together utilizing advanced simulated education practices that all health-care providers will be best prepared to meet the complex challenges patients and families present in today's health-care system," she said.

The new site will provide offices and facilities for many IU and Clarian employees who are currently based in off-campus buildings or at one of the hospitals. From the canal location, employees will have easy access to the People Mover, which provides efficient transportation between the hospitals and the IU Medical Center and Methodist campuses.

Clarian departments relocating to the new building include human resources, statewide operations, recruitment, business development, marketing and corporate communications, legal, managed care, infection control, nursing quality, procurement, government affairs and others whose employees frequently move between the Downtown Indianapolis campuses.

More Voices