For medical professionals who can't make it to the Irvine campus in person, the Institute recently converted an RV into a mobile dry lab where surgeons, residents, fellows and physician assistants can get hands-on experience using Johnson & Johnson innovations on model bones made of polyurethane, glass fibers and epoxy resins.

“In many instances, customers don’t have time to travel to the Institute for training,” explains Professional Education Manager Mike Plastow Mike Plastow,Professional Education Manager. “If we hear that a physician wants to gain more experience using the Actis® Total Hip System, for instance, we can put the instruments and model bones in the mobile lab and roll up in front of the doctor's practice a day or two later.”

In the back of the mobile dry lab, Institute staff point out features of the Attune® Primary Total Knee System made by DePuy Synthes.

“These model bones give surgeons an opportunity to practice basic techniques, learn how to implement certain instruments and demonstrate different techniques without any of the concerns over tissue storage, biohazard removal, ventilation or suction that you would have in a wet lab,” Plastow explains.

Each of the Irvine Institute’s classrooms are equipped with multiple forms of connectivity, including HDMI, VGA and audio inputs, enabling students to easily share information from their personal computers with classmates who are remote and want to follow along.

Here, Commercial Education Manager Katie Williams Katie Williams,Commercial Education Manager displays an ultrasound image and takes notes on the interactive screen. “Whatever I write on the board shows up on six different HD monitors around the room for all the students to see, which is really an improvement over an old-school pointer,” she says.

Beyond the technology, Williams says students also appreciate the classroom architecture, which was designed with two walls of windows to provide ample natural light and views of the lush green campus.

Rodger McManus Rodger McManus,Clinical Education Specialist is a Clinical Education Specialist who focuses on such trauma education as fracture reduction and fixation. “Whether you fall off your bike and fracture your collarbone, or take a wrong step and break your ankle, DePuy Synthes has a system designed for each bone and specific types of fracture patterns,” he notes.

In this photo, McManus is working at a C-arm—a mobile medical imaging device used to provide real-time X-rays during surgeries. “I’m holding a guidewire here and using a targeting device to predict how deep a nail is being inserted into the bone,” he explains.

McManus demonstrates a system designed to treat hip fractures that gives the femur a rigid fixation, allowing the bone to bear weight immediately, which dramatically increases a patient's ability to heal and regain mobility.

“It’s very rewarding to know that the education we provide enables surgeons to perform minimally invasive hip procedures that help patients who have bone replaced with metal implants to get up and walk the same day," Plastow says. "The staff here at the Institute work around the clock to make every training event successful. We are passionate about education because we see the results and the benefits of the training we provide.”

A Clinical Account Specialist (CAS) moves a diagnostic catheter—part of the Carto® 3 System from Biosense Webster—through a simulated heart model in a water bath. As the catheter moves, it creates a 3-D image of the anatomy on the screen. The training prepares the CAS to provide technical support for cardiac electrophysiologists performing cardiac ablation procedures.

In an actual surgery, the surgeon inserts the catheter through a vein in a patient’s leg and guides it up to the heart. Magnetic technology similar to GPS enables the physician to track the progress of the catheter through the heart and visualize it on screen. The surgeon can then correct arrhythmias by delivering radio-frequency energy through the catheter to damaged (or “ablate”) cells that are causing the abnormal heart rate.

“I have been really impressed with the ability of the Institute’s instructors to train all types of learners—visual, auditory and tactile,” says Teresa Aboueljoud, a CAS in electrophysiology at Biosense Webster who has participated in training sessions at the Institute. “The instructors bend over backwards to give you whatever training you need.”