USE OF SIMULATED CLIENTS IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY EDUCATION

Knowledge of how one should manage suicidal, homicidal, child maltreatment, and domes-tic violence situations is paramount in the training of marriage and family therapists (MFTs). Simulated patient modules were created to help clinical faculty address these crisis situations in a protected learning environment. The modules were implemented by the MFT faculty in collaboration with the Office of Clinical Skills Assessment and Edu-cation at East Carolina University’s Brody School of Medicine. Qualitative data over the course of 2 years revealed six thematic domains regarding therapists ’ performance, thera-pists ’ emotions, the simulation experiences, and lessons learned. Educational, clinical, and research recommendations include tools to implement simulation exercises into marriage and family therapy programs as well as suggestions to assess for teaching effectiveness. In the medical field, a form of instruction that has become increasingly more common in the training of physicians is the use of standardized or simulated patient (SP) scenarios. Typic-ally, an SP scenario involves any ‘‘medical encounter conducted purely for educational purpo-ses’ ’ (Adamo, 2003, p. 262), in which ‘‘participants have the opportunity to interact with patients in a controlled learning environment’ ’ (Donovan, Hutchison, & Kelly, 2003, p. 125)