Simulation-Based Wound Closure Training System

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This revision of Phase II of our Fast Track SBIR consists of the addition of a new specific aim that addresses an important technical consideration that emerged after the submission and subsequent approval of this proposal. This aim involves adaption of our multi-core parallel computation code developed in Phase I of the SBIR to also run on graphics processor units (GPUs), which are now applicable to a variety of general-purpose scientific/engineering calculations. Use of GPUs has the potential to decrease hardware costs, maximize the realism of the simulation, accelerate market introduction, and broaden the product's potential market. The work requires that SimQuest dedicate an additional computational physics software engineer to the project and fund the work of a graduate student to apply these new technical advances to the open surgery simulator product. The new specific aim will enable (1) completion of an initial evaluation of our existing computation codes and re-architecting them to take advantage of the specific strengths of GPU-based computation, (2) development of new code to work on the GPU, (3) assessment and refinement of that implementation to maximize benefits, and (4) integration of this code with the simulator. Adding this specific aim will enable SimQuest to explore a newly available approach to meeting our product needs that has the potential to expand its market adoption through enabling a lower cost entry price as well as speed its introduction to surgical training through expanded simulation capability. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The wound closure training simulator that will result from this proposed effort will meet the training needs of numerous groups of US healthcare workers, from surgical residents to nurses to emergency medical technicians to military medics. It will provide an effective means of broadly providing consistent best- practices teaching in diverse locations. The result will be a better-trained healthcare workforce that will provide more effective care to the public.