Karen Aul, a nursing instructor at Butler County Community College, laughs as she checks the blood pressure of SimMan on Friday, Jan. 16, 2009. Butler Eagle file photo

The nursing faculty at Butler County Community College teamed with nursing staff at Butler Memorial Hospital on Friday, Jan. 16, 2009, to train on robotic patients simulating health emergencies as extreme as cardiac arrest.

The SimMan, created by Laerdal, can talk about his symptoms and complain of pain. Its body can make the heart, lung and bowel noises a practicing nurse needs to hear to address their underlying causes. The mannequin could also be programmed by the instructors with custom phrases.

The patient also reacted to the students’ actions, and could simulate conditions to help students gain assessment and diagnostic skills.