Be clear about what it’s for. A desktop simulation is good for practising judgement, prioritising, communicating and working as a team when the situation keeps changing. It’s not the best way to teach new content. Make sure participants already have the knowledge they need, then use the simulation to practise applying it under pressure.
Brief well, and make it safe. Start by explaining the aim, how the session runs and the ground rules: it’s a safe place to make mistakes, what’s said stays in the room, and everyone stays in role until the debrief. People take more risks, and learn more, when they know they won’t be judged for getting it wrong.
Let the scenario do the work. Give each stage’s update, then step back. Resist the urge to correct teams as they go; let the consequences of their decisions show up in the next stage. Use the prompts only when a team is genuinely stuck, and the curveball when a team is coasting.
Use roles and private information. Giving each role its own goals and information that others don’t have makes teams communicate, negotiate and check assumptions, just as they must in practice. Watch for who speaks, who’s ignored and whether important information gets shared.
Keep time visibly. A visible clock and the scenario time on screen add realistic pressure and keep all the teams together. If you’re running behind, shorten a middle stage, never the debrief.
Spend a quarter of the time on the debrief. The learning happens afterwards. Start with how people felt, then work through what happened and why, then what they’ll do differently in practice. Ask about decisions rather than people, link them back to the objectives and the evidence, and finish with the key points.
Check it before you run it. The simulation is written by AI. Check every clinical detail, figure, procedure and expected action against current guidelines and your local policies, and walk through it yourself, before you run it with students.