LEWISTON — Shannon Packard, R.N., of the Central Maine Medical Center College of Nursing and Health Professions, was recently a speaker at the 22nd annual Nursing Midwifery Research Conference and 23rd Annual Mary J. Seivwright Day in Kingston, Jamaica.

Packard’s address, “The Use of Simulation in Nursing Education,” explored an innovative technology that allows students and health care practitioners at all levels to participate in patient care scenarios with life-size manikins. The manikins are realistic and interactive, providing opportunities for diagnoses and interventions.

Packard is a nurse educator, project manager and a national expert on simulation. She established the simulation lab at the CONHP and integrated simulation into the nursing curriculum. She is currently project manager for the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, a federal program that provides distance learning education to students in Maine’s Washington County.