PrintPulse Check: An Online Change Management Simulation
This past summer, the University of Toronto's Collaborative for Health Sector Strategy (CHSS) and UHN's Centre for Innovation in Complex Care (CICC) embarked on a 9 week inter-professional summer internship program. Six students from different backgrounds, including business, medicine, social work, engineering, and design, were assembled as a team to create a simulation tool about change management within the context of health care. Aside from the simulation, another important piece of this project was the creation and development of a successful inter-professional team. The group, which the students called “Team Elephant”, simultaneously recorded its process work and team development while creating the simulation in order to record the process, trials and successes of working inter-professionally. The result of these nine weeks was "Pulse Check", an online simulation game that teaches strategies in change management, inter-professional teamwork and Lean Theory. "Pulse Check" will be used in university curriculum and health sector leadership development programs.
Leslie Beard is one of the industrial designers on the team. She recently graduated from the Ontario College of Art & Design with a Bachelor of Design. Leslie is particularly interested in designing for health care and in applying creative design strategies in ways that provide empowering and enriching experiences for people. Leslie is also a self-described ‘gamer’ who’s really excited about the opportunity to create a game for change in healthcare. |
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Eric Chow is a recent graduate from the industrial engineering program at the University of Toronto. He has a practical background in implementing six-sigma change in the pharmaceutical industry and is a certified yellow belt in process excellence. Eric's academics have focused on lean methodologies and applying engineering techniques to improving health systems. He is passionate about bringing lean approaches into the healthcare industry and will serve as one of the content-experts on lean for the project. Eric is also passionate about spending time in the mountains, whether it’s climbing Mt Kilimanjaro or biking through the wilderness. |
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Kelly Emms has just completed her first year as a medical student and is also the incoming President of the Medical Society at the University of Toronto. She completed her undergraduate degree at McMaster University in the Bachelor of Health Sciences Programme with a background in inquiry, group dynamics and complex adaptive systems. Some of her interests for this project include collaboration, education and inter-professionalism. |
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Reza Motaghedi is a physician with six years of work experience as a GP, having spent three years as a medical resident in the United Kingdom. He began his MBA at the Rotman School of Management in 2007 and his primary goal is to become involved in the health care industry upon graduation. Reza is also an avid photographer who takes breathtaking photographs. |
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Camilla Pettit, is currently completing her Master of Social Work degree at the University of Toronto. She has a strong interest in health-related social work, particularly in the perinatal settings. This is reflected in her recently completed MSW practicum placement at North York General Hospital, where she provided psychosocial support and resources to families within the Maternal Newborn Unit, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and In-patient Paediatrics. |
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Denise Pinto is another recent graduate of the industrial design program at the Ontario College of Art and Design. She is passionate about user-experience, participatory design and processes of imaginative inquiry. Formerly a research assistant at the Beal Institute for Strategic Creativity, she also recently participated in a healthcare project with the Rotman School of Management's Designworks think tank. This fall, Denise will be embarking on a Master's program in Landscape Architecture. |
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