Hal the manikin is such a model patient

A manikin called Hal is helping doctors and nurses to safely treat patients.

The sophisticated model can simulate a cardiac arrest in the same way as a human.

Hal can breathe, speak, has audible heart and lung sounds, a measurable pulse rate and responds to drugs.

Hal is part of a family of simulated patients at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Simulation and Interactive Learning Centre.

Once a month the model is taken onto the wards to run a cardiac arrest scenario. The team of nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals are not given any prior warning about the exercise.

A cardiac arrest call is made and the staff only know that it is a simulation when they arrive on the scene to find the model.

Since training with Hal started in August 2017, more than 200 staff have taken part in the exercise.

Dr Shumontha Dev, a consultant in emergency medicine and deputy director of medical education at Guy’s and St Thomas’, said: “Every second counts when someone has a cardiac arrest so it’s important that our staff are able to handle stressful and highly-charged situations.

“By taking the simulation equipment to clinical areas around our hospitals and basing the exercise on real life scenarios, staff are able to practice looking after patients in their own environment.”