Simulated Patient Program

A simulated patient is a person who accurately and consistently portrays the history, personality, physical findings, emotions, and behavior of an actual patient at a particular point in the patient's course of illness.

We use simulated patients to simulate the following situations:

• Counseling a patient on a prescribed or over the counter medication.
• Conducting a medication history review to collect a complete account of all prescribed and non-prescribed medications a patient is taking or has taken in the past.
• Counseling a patient on behavior changes, such as medication adherence, lifestyle changes, tobacco cessation, etc.,

The college of pharmacy recruits individuals invested in helping educate the next generation of pharmacists to be empathic and patient-centric healthcare providers. Being an SP requires listening and communication skills, memorization, concentration, and recall.

As an SP, you will be responsible for:

• Accurately and convincingly portraying a specific patient.
• Following a script.
• Recalling student performances and completing a checklist/rubric.
• Providing verbal and written feedback to students regarding their performance.

You will complete these tasks in succession without change for a period of time.

There is not. You can expect your schedule as an SP to vary. This position is temporary and considered occasional work. The simulated patient program runs during the academic year, September through April. Activities are scheduled Monday-Friday, between the hours of 7 am-6 pm.

Your availability for the fall semester is requested in August and availability for the winter semester is requested in November. You are scheduled for SP activities based on your availability for the SP activity and training. You will receive your schedule for the fall semester in mid-late August and mid-late November for the winter semester.

Since you are scheduled for activities months in advance, we understand that circumstances change. If you are no longer available for an SP experience (lab or training), the Assistant Director will work with you to find a replacement.

This position is temporary and occasional work. The needs for the SP program vary and are seasonal. There are busy seasons and slower seasons. You may go a few weeks without working as a simulated patient while other weeks you may be scheduled multiple times.

Our simulated patient program encompasses both in-person and remote activities. SPs must have reliable high-speed internet, access to a computer that can handle video conferencing, as well as a quiet place to conduct the sessions uninterrupted to work remote SP activities.

Yes, SPs are compensated for their time. SPs are compensated on a tiered pay rate from $15-$26 an hour. It depends on what type of activity you are scheduled for.