Iran Advanced Clinical Training (iACT) center has been established as the first training center with the mission of introducing the capabilities and promoting advanced medical equipment made in Iran and training and skills development of the country’s medical staff to use them. This center is a subset of Tehran University of Medical Sciences in the Research Institute of Advanced Medical Technologies and Equipment and is located in the heart of Imam Khomeini Hospital as the largest teaching hospital in the country and is in direct interaction with the medical staff.
The center was equipped with the support of the Vice President for Science and Technology and the participation of start-up companies producing these equipment and the professors of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, in coordination with the Vice Chancellor for Education, provide educational services based on the domestic manufacturing equipment installed in this center.
The advanced medical equipment available at iACT center is divided into two main categories:
The first category includes advanced simulators of clinical and surgical skills. These equipment provide the possibility of training and experiencing the mentioned skills in the virtual environment for the trainees and improve their skills before the practical experience in real environment.
The other category includes advanced medical equipment that will be used in the real environments to teach clinical skills. These equipment help doctors in the process of diagnosis and treatment so that the treatment processes are completed with the least injuries and higher quality to the patient.
The training process in this center is performed by skilled surgeons and faculty members of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and this provides a valuable opportunity for surgeons, physicians and residents of medical fields to get acquainted with the Iranian advanced medical equipment and benefit from the experiences of experts.
Now, it is possible to get acquainted and experience working with dozens of advanced medical equipment made in Iran at the iACT center for medical staff. These devices are:
· Parsiss Surgical Navigation System
· Brain Biopsy Surgical Navigation System
· Sina Robotic Telesurgery System
· Sina Robotic Telesurgery Simulator
· Laparoscopic Surgery Assistant Robot
· Laparoscopic Surgery Simulator
· Eye Surgery Simulator
· Intra-operative Cancer Diagnosis system
· Gamma Probe & Gamma Pen
· Nailfold Capillaroscope
· Polarizing Microscope
· Lumbar Puncture Simulator
· 3-D Clinical Skills Simulator in the Virtual Reality Environment
It is noteworthy that all the advanced medical equipment available in this center has been designed and manufactured by Iranian technologists and start-up companies.
The coherent training for medical staff will increase the quality of medical services and their skills in the use of the advanced Iranian medical equipment. According to the following figure, iACT courses are provided in three continuous and complementary steps. These steps include:
1. Ex-vivo includes
· Teaching the theoretical foundations and basics of any new diagnostic or therapeutic equipment
· Skills training with relevant simulators in the virtual environment with the possibility of evaluating user performance
· Practicing and skills training on viscera and artificial models
2. Pre-clinical includes
· Skill training on the dead body
· Skill training on the live animals
3. Clinical includes
· Observing the clinical performance of the trainer or surgeon
· Clinical performance of the trainee under the supervision of the surgeon or trainer in the clinical environment
The skill courses taught in this center will receive the approval from the “National Center for Skills and Vocational Training of Medical Sciences of the Islamic Republic of Iran” under the Education Deputy of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education. Also, the trainees in this center, in case of obtaining the necessary points in the end-of-course exams will be awarded a certificate of skill and professional competence in using domestic technologies in treatment.
It is hoped that the establishment of this center, in addition to promoting the use of domestic technologies and medical equipment, will significantly reduce the country’s costs and dependence on foreign products. The presence of such a center in the heart of Imam Khomeini Hospital will definitely cause medical equipment companies to interact more closely with medical staff, and while eliminating possible shortcomings in current products, will lead to innovative new ideas in the development of domestic medical technologies using collaboration with clinical and technical staff.
iACT tries to take a step towards introducing Iran as one of the countries with advanced medical technologies and the highest level of quality of health services among other countries and to accelerate the development path in this direction.
