Elsevier, the leading global publisher of scientific, technical, and medical information products and services, announced a partnership agreement with Medical Education Technologies, Inc. (METI), a leading manufacturer of medical simulation and health care learning technologies. The companies will collaborate to release a turn-key health care education product that combines Elsevier's nursing education content with METI's human patient simulators.

“Nursing programmes around the country are looking for more effective ways to prepare the future health care workforce for success in the realities of clinical practice,” said Tom Wilhelm, vice president, e-solutions, Elsevier Nursing and Health Professions. “This new solution will provide nursing students with hands-on learning when clinical space is at a premium, and offer the training and experience they need to handle new and emerging best practices and technologies. For educators, this product provides a solution that enables them to deliver simulated clinical experiences without having to manually change each setting in the patient simulator.”

Elsevier and METI will combine METI's human patient simulators integrated with Müse(R), a medical trainer's simulator operating software, with Elsevier's current suite of nursing simulation products, including Sim Chart, a new simulated EHR and charting system, and Simulation Learning System (SLS), an online toolkit that helps instructors and facilitators effectively standardize and incorporate medium to high fidelity simulation into their nursing curriculum.

“Elsevier and METI's new offering is a seamless solution that will make it much easier for us to integrate simulation activities into our nursing programme and provide more comprehensive training for future nurses,” said Kim Leighton, Dean of Educational Technology, BryanLGH College of Health Sciences. “The new product will allow us to spend more time preparing our students for real-life clinical situations they will face in the workplace, and less time preparing our simulation activities.”

The combined solution is available to nursing education programmes and schools through Elsevier or METI. Customers who have already purchased a METI human patient simulator can integrate the Elsevier content for the complete solution. Elsevier will also continue to offer its education content without METI simulators, and METI simulators are available without Elsevier content.

“This partnership comes at a crucial time because of the current shortage of clinical sites for nursing and health professional education,” said Michael Bernstein, president and CEO of METI. “In addition, incentives in the government's recent health care legislation are driving increased adoption of simulation technology. Elsevier is highly regarded in nursing education and shares our vision and commitment to provide technology that supports the direction health care is going and the advancement of real-world training that improves patient safety and ultimately, saves lives.”

METI has been a leader in interactive human patient simulation since 1996. The entire family of METI simulators, including baby, paediatric and adults, are designed to mimic human medical scenarios including trauma, heart attack, drug overdose and effects of bioterrorism.

Elsevier is a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services.