SimCast

In this episode of SimCast, we welcome Mandy Wilford from the University of Staffordshire to explore building a culture of simulation across higher education. Drawing on her experience in nursing, NHS education and the commercial sector, Mandy shares how collaboration, leadership support and structured staff development have supported simulation across healthcare and policing. We discuss preparing...

In this episode of SimCast, Tony Jermy and Lawrence Hill welcome Helen Jarratt and Annie Constant from MPFT to explore organisational readiness for simulation-based learning. They trace the development of an early idea into a dedicated simulation suite, explaining how workforce engagement, leadership support and persistence shaped provision across a large, geographically dispersed community trust....

Recorded live at the Maudsley Learning Mental Health Simulation Conference, this special SimCast panel brings together speakers and faculty to reflect on some of the major issues shaping mental health simulation. Tony and Lawrence are joined by Liz, Nikki, James and Camilla to explore what prevents effective simulation from producing sustained change in healthcare systems, and how transformative s...

What does the future of healthcare simulation look like, and are we thinking big enough about what simulation can actually achieve? In this episode of SimCast, Lawrence Hill and Tony Jermy are joined by Professor Sharon Weldon, President of the Association for Simulated Practice in Healthcare (ASPiH), to explore the rapidly evolving future of simulation. Sharon reflects on her remarkable journey i...

In this episode of SimCast, Tony and Lawrence visit MKC Training at the Historic Dockyard Chatham to explore BlueRoom, an advanced mixed reality platform being used to create highly immersive simulation experiences. Joined by defence medical lead Keith Mills, they examine how mixed reality can place learners inside complex clinical and operational environments while still allowing them to interact...

In this episode of SimCast, Lawrence Hill and Tony Jermy are joined by Helen Needham, a learning disability nurse and academic at Birmingham City University with more than 40 years of experience across clinical, community and educational settings. Helen explores how simulation can help healthcare students develop the communication, relational and interpersonal skills needed when working with peopl...

In this episode, Tony and Lawrence speak with nurse educator Steph Reynolds about the limited visibility of community nursing within pre-registration nurse education. Steph challenges common assumptions that community nursing is less skilled or less clinically demanding than acute care, highlighting a plethora of skillsets required when supporting people in their own homes. Steph also describes an...

In the final episode of our three-part Maudsley Learning series, Lawrence  and Tony are joined by Dr Kirsten Howson and Anni Winnie to explore the central role of debriefing in mental health simulation. They examine how Maudsley Learning uses simulation scenarios as a springboard for deeper reflection, drawing on the Diamond Debrief Model, advocacy with inquiry and carefully structured discussions...

In the second episode of our three-part SimCast mini-series with Maudsley Learning, Tony and Lawrence are joined by Camilla Fadel and Gareth Evans to explore how Maudsley Learning designs, adapts and delivers mental health simulation across healthcare, social care, universities, charities, corporate organisations and international partners. This episode focuses on the practical work behind authent...

In this episode of SimCast, Tony and Lawrence sit down with James Pathan and Kiran Virk to explore the remarkable origins of  Maudsley Learning⁠, the UK’s first dedicated mental health simulation centre. From a single mannequin in a box to a nationally recognised centre of excellence, James and Kiran share how they pioneered mental health simulation, developed immersive actor-led scenarios, and bu...

How realistic are our patient simulators, really? In this episode of SimCast, Tony and Lawrence sit down with Professor Willem van Meurs, one of the pioneers of physiological modelling in healthcare simulation. Willem takes us behind the development of some of the world’s first model-driven patient simulators and challenges a major assumption within simulation-based education: why are many modern...

In this episode of SimCast, Lawrence Hill and Tony Jermy are joined by Russ Sinclair, Matt Clark and Hannah May to explore the emerging identity and future direction of the healthcare simulation technician community. The discussion centres around the development of SimTechSym, a new national symposium designed by simulation technicians for simulation technicians. The conversation explores technici...

What happens when simulated practice learning stops being seen as the “poor substitute” for placement and starts becoming one of the most powerful tools in healthcare education?  In this episode Tony Jermy and Lawrence Hill are joined by Joelle Salje to unpack “The Poison Apple of SPL”. Drawing on Joelle’s pioneering work in simulated practice learning (SPL), this episode explores why simulation i...

What does it take to make simulation truly meaningful in healthcare education? In this episode of SimCast, Tony Jermy and Lawrence Hill are joined by Linsey McLeish, Head of Skills and Simulation Practice at Buckinghamshire New University, to explore Simulated Practice Learning (SPL), curriculum design, and the growing evidence base linking simulation to patient safety. Drawing on Lindsay’s unique...

Explore the launch of a new, inclusive simulation journal designed to bring together the real-world practice of simulation across healthcare professions. In this episode, we are joined by Aby Mitchell and Sophie Gardner to discuss why this journal was created, how it differs from traditional academic publications, and why there is a need for a more practical, accessible home for simulation scholar...

What happens when simulation goes wrong… before it even begins? In this candid and reflective episode of SimCast, we turn an unexpected error, forgetting to send a guest invitation, into a rich discussion on human factors, complexity, and the realities of simulation-based education. Drawing on real experience, we explore why error is inevitable in complex systems and how educators can reframe mist...

In this episode of SimCast, we explore how AI-powered virtual placements are reshaping healthcare simulation. Joined by Abby Mitchell and Behnam Jafari from King’s College London, Tony and Lawrence examine how co-design, representation, and technology intersect to create authentic, scalable learning experiences. This conversation moves beyond the hype of AI and asks deeper questions about access,...

In  this episode of SimCast, Tony and Lawrence are joined by Phil Purver and Alex Clark from iRIS to explore a cloud-based scenario design and management platform that’s changing the way simulation is created, governed and delivered. From AI-generated scenarios to importing legacy Word documents and accessing a global library of over 1200 shared cases, iRIS is tackling the three pressures every si...

In this episode of SimCast Tony and Lawrence are joined by Craig Dores, NHS Simulation Technician, former British Army Combat Medic, host of the SimTech Podcast and founder of the National Simulation Technician Awards, Craig shares how a gap in the simulation podcast landscape led him to create a platform dedicated to the technician voice. The conversation explores professional identity, the evolv...

In this episode of SimCast, Lawrence Hill and Tony Jermy explore how simulation educators can use large language models to work smarter, not harder. Rather than focusing on high-cost or bespoke AI simulation platforms, this conversation stays firmly grounded in the pragmatic, everyday use of tools such as ChatGPT and Copilot to support the realities of simulation faculty workloads. The discussion...

In this episode of SimCast, hosts Tony and Lawrence are joined by Jo Sullivan and Kelly Steele to explore neurodiversity in simulation-based education. The conversation examines how simulation design, facilitation and debriefing can unintentionally exclude neurodivergent learners and what educators can do to create more inclusive, psychologically safe learning environments. Drawing on lived experi...

Forgive me father for I have simmed... 🙏🏻 SimCast returns for its first episode of 2026, with Tony and Lawrence back in the studio after the festive break and easing themselves into the new year by opening the simulation confessional. Armed with a shuffled deck of cards and a set of AI-generated prompts, they reflect candidly on the moments simulation educators rarely admit out loud, when techno...

SimCast  Debriefing the Delegation Live at HPSN 2025. What Could Possibly Go Wrong?... What happens when you try to debrief an entire conference? In this special live episode of SimCast, recorded on stage at the Elevate HPSN Conference 2025, Tony Jermy and Lawrence Hill attempt something ambitious, slightly risky, and very on brand for simulation educators: they turn a plenary session into a live...

Strap in for one of the most imaginative episodes of SimCast yet. In this Desert-Island-Discs-inspired simulation challenge, Lawrence and Tony face a dramatic scenario: the plane taking them to an international simulation conference has crash-landed. With only two minutes to grab equipment, they must choose three essential pieces of simulation kit to build a functioning sim centre on a desert isla...

In this epsidoe, Tony and Lawrence sit down with Nick Turton, Simulation Centre Manager at the University of Nottingham’s Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences. Nick oversees a highly evolved simulation ecosystem, including a faculty-wide clinical skills service, a specialist technical workforce, and a 100-strong simulated patient network. Together, we explore what a Simulation Centre Manager...