Groundbreaking, Industry-First Collaboration Between OpusVi and Laerdal Medical Brings Competency-Based Simulation Training to Hospitals Nationwide

OpusVi and Laerdal Medical announce a unique partnership to offer simulation training and validation of competencies through the use of high-fidelity simulation mobile laboratories. Beginning with OpusVi's nurse residency, preceptor and mentor training solution, the data generated will inform training programs, improve patient safety, increase provider confidence and reduce burnout.

PHOENIX, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - OpusVi™ (formerly Dignity Health Global Education), a leading workforce development solutions provider backed by CommonSpirit Health, Providence Health and Premier Inc., that exclusively enables healthcare systems and organizations to upskill and retain top talent, has partnered with Laerdal Medical, the global authority in lifesaving simulation and training technology, to tackle one of healthcare's biggest challenges: retention of nurses. This game-changing collaboration pairs Laerdal's state-of-the-art, high-fidelity simulation technology with OpusVi's innovative nurse residency and preceptor training programs to close critical skills gaps, improve nurse retention and reduce patient risk at scale. Through mobile simulation experiences, the partnership will bring advanced training directly to healthcare organizations of all sizes, empowering the nursing workforce with unmatched competence, confidence and support. Together, OpusVi and Laerdal are setting a new standard for healthcare training and workforce sustainability nationwide.

The partnership will:

• Launch the first-to-market transition to practice program with preceptor training and high-fidelity simulation training
• Empower the nursing workforce with greater competence and confidence, resulting in reduced medical errors and improved patient safety
• Bring advanced training and evaluations directly to healthcare organizations of all sizes through mobile labs
• Set a new standard for training and competency validation in the nursing workforce

Each year, an estimated 795,000 Americans die or are permanently disabled due to diagnostic errors, and medical errors cost the healthcare system an estimated $20 billion each year underscoring the critical need for solutions to enhance clinical competence and patient safety.

At the same time, nurse retention rates across the industry remain alarmingly low and one-third of nursing faculty who teach are expected to retire in 2025. This combination of medical errors and high nurse vacancies places immense pressure on healthcare systems and the remaining nursing workforce to find innovative ways to improve patient and clinician outcomes.

OpusVi's Nurse Residency, Preceptor and Mentor Training Program provides fully comprehensive evidence-based learning practices, high-impact content and curricula, seamless integration into hospital organizations' Learning Management System (LMS) and rich data collection in real-time. This program has also shown exceptional results in addressing workforce challenges. Within CommonSpirit Health, one of the nation's largest nonprofit health systems, implementing OpusVi's Nurse Residency and Preceptor Training program led to a 92% retention rate among new nurses, significantly reducing turnover and saving an estimated $16.3 million in annual labor costs in the first year alone.

Similarly, Laerdal has led the industry in helping organizations incorporate high-fidelity simulation technology, and associated analytic insights, to enable competency development and improve team performance through the utilization of patient simulation mannequins with realistic physiological capabilities. Laerdal's technology has demonstrated success in reducing medical errors by offering a safe, controllable and highly educational experience to nurses without putting patients at risk, with evidence demonstrating 51% risk reduction when utilizing simulation in the healthcare setting.

"High-fidelity simulation has consistently proven to be highly effective in clinical education, offering nurses a safe, controlled environment to practice and validate essential skills," says Neil Weber, President, Laerdal Medical, SMS- Americas. "By partnering with OpusVi, we are extending the reach of this proven methodology to healthcare facilities that might not otherwise have access, ensuring broader adoption of advanced training methods to enhance patient safety, improve nurse competency and ultimately reduce medical errors."

By combining OpusVi's expertise in workforce development with Laerdal's validated simulation solutions and experience, the launch of mobile simulation experiences and corresponding analytic insights in combination with OpusVi's Nurse Residency and Preceptor Training offering will set a new standard for competency validation, improve nurse retention and mitigate patient risk. New nurses given access to this first-to-market experiential training will benefit from a safe controlled environment where they can practice critical skills, build confidence and learn from high-stakes scenarios without jeopardizing patient safety. This approach not only accelerates their readiness for real-world challenges but also fosters resilience, reduces anxiety and reinforces their ability to deliver high-quality care from day one.

OpusVi and Laerdal are addressing and solving for the critical gaps in knowledge, skills and attitudes by bringing the simulation experiences directly to hospitals across the country. While some hospitals are able to build expensive, high-tech training facilities on-site, most healthcare organizations do not have the capacity for this level of training and competency validation.

"This partnership is a game-changer for healthcare," says Andrew Malley, CEO of OpusVi. "With our first-ever mobile simulation experiences and evidence-based training integrated into our Nurse Residency and Preceptor programs, we're giving nurses the tools to build confidence, sharpen skills, and deliver exceptional care. By creating a safe, supportive environment for growth, we're not only improving patient safety and outcomes but also boosting job satisfaction and retention—key to building a stronger, more resilient healthcare workforce."

While legacy nurse training programs focus solely on content delivery, OpusVi takes a comprehensive approach, integrating content, curricula, delivery and reporting. With rich real-time data insights, leaders can measure training ROI, track learner engagement and detect early dropout risks – reducing turnover and bolstering support for new nurses. With the addition of Laerdal's simulation exercises and the competency validation data that comes with them, this offering will give healthcare leaders unprecedented insight into the efficacy of the training and the readiness of their nursing workforce.

"The transition to practice is one of the most critical challenges facing the nursing workforce today, and strong evidence-based solutions are essential to address it," says Julie DeLoia, Chief Academic Officer at OpusVi. "By combining Laerdal's industry-leading simulation technology with OpusVi's data-driven nurse residency and preceptor training programs, we are providing healthcare organizations with the tools needed to build a skilled, confident nursing workforce. This partnership supports nurse retention, reduces turnover and strengthens the foundation for safer, more effective patient care."

For additional information about this partnership, please visit opusvi.com or email [email protected].

Great Solutions, Great Healthcare
OpusVi (Latin for Workforce) partners with healthcare organizations to build transformative workforce solutions. We have developed a workforce development platform that enables healthcare systems and organizations to upskill and retain top talent. Dedicated to providing the best client experience, we have designed custom online and hybrid programs and workforce development solutions that improve and positively impact talent retention as much as patient health and quality of care. We remain leaders in the healthcare education space by creating scalable, cutting-edge solutions through innovative technologies, clinical expertise and evidence-based training alongside the industry's top subject matter experts and academic institutions. To learn more about OpusVi please visit opusvi.com.

Laerdal is dedicated to our mission of helping save lives. Laerdal Medical is a world leader in healthcare education and resuscitation training that uses immersive technologies and data-centric insights to increase survival and improve healthcare quality. We empower our heroes/life savers, and healthcare workers, to help them save more lives. Improving the quality of care is part of our mission, to help save more lives. And we have established the goal to help save one million more lives. Every year. By 2030. However, we can't do this alone. This is a shared goal of the Laerdal Group. A group of companies that develops healthcare-related solutions and programs focused on a common mission to help save lives, together with our Partners. The Laerdal Group is composed of Laerdal Medical, Laerdal Global Health, Million Lives Fund and Laerdal Foundation. Laerdal is a global company in 26 countries worldwide. For more information, visit www.laerdal.com.

SOURCE OpusVi