Professional Development of the SP Educator

Standardized/simulated patients (SPs) are individuals who been taught how to portray a patient story so authentically that an experienced clinician could not tell the difference. They are the “physical and psychological embodiment of a real patient” giving the learners the opportunity to attend to the whole patient (Barrows HS, Acad Med Philadelphia 68:443–451, 1993). Over almost 60 years, the role of the SP has expanded from patient proxy to faculty proxy, becoming a teacher and evaluator and providing feedback to learners in real time. SP methodology has expanded beyond healthcare education in such areas as law and business. While we have been using and studying SP methodology since Dr. Barrows first imagined its power in the early 1960s (Barrows HS, Acad Med Philadelphia 68:443–451, 1993; Wallace P, Caduceus (Springfield, Ill) 13:5, 1997), the role and value of the Standardized Patient Educator (SPE) is just now being examined and articulated (Pritchard et al., Med Teach 39:1159–1167, 2017 and Dieckmann et al., Clinical simulation: operations, engineering, and management. Academic Press, Burlington, 2008). As an emerging profession (one that has yet be defined or found in career planning guides) having a better understanding of who is working in this complex and ever-evolving role will help others to build successful SPE careers. Professional development helps build knowledge and skills, improves relationships with faculty and learners, and expands the capacity to contribute to the growth of the SPE profession. This chapter will explore what the SPE does, how one develops a career as a SPE, and promotes the profession through leadership and scholarship.