An Inexpensive and Novel Phantom Prototype for Auscultation in Simulation-based Training for Medical Processes

Simulation-based training is an interdisciplinary area used in medicine that allows students to improve the learning process which, in turn, ensures their professional competence. The development of new technologies applied to a simulated scenario can be implemented in hospitals and classrooms. However, simulation is an educational methodology that involves teamwork and communication skills, not a technology. In this context, this work is about the development of a training system for auscultation processes using a phantom and an adapted stethoscope to generate body sounds. Sensors and a high-quality bluetooth sound system allows to simulate a pool of heart and lung diseases. The phantom creates its own wireless network to connect a smartphone and use a mobile application to configure the settings of the system. Also, the phantom has been built using low cost components and with a modular software design. Finally, the implementation and the first practical results will be presented, with a discussion about the future work.