COLUMBUS, Ohio — Acting ranges from local theater to Hollywood. But what about the classroom? Standardized Patients, a type of actor, at Ohio State University, are playing a very important role, in teaching future generations of health care professionals. 

What You Need To Know

  • Carmen Ambrosio has been an actress at the university’s Clinical Skills Education and Assessment Center for ten years

  • Fourth-year medical student Jessica Sciuva has worked on a diverse range of cases in the Simulation Center
  • Standardized Patients enter every encounter with a history of present illness, past medical history, family history, social background information and more
  • The interactions are observed by professors, like Dr. Sheryl Pfeil, Director of the Clinical Skills Education and Assessment Center

Carmen Ambrosio has been an actress at the university’s Clinical Skills Education and Assessment Center for ten years.

"When I stopped working, I wanted to find something, you know, an environment where I could learn and at the same time, contribute and I'm able to do both here," she said.

Ambrosio is a Standardized Patient, portraying a variety of medical cases so students can get hands-on experience before entering a professional setting.

Fourth-year medical student Jessica Sciuva has worked on a diverse range of cases in the Simulation Center. She’s found it to be, “a place to learn. It’s a place to grow. And I think the environment that the Standardized Patients provide us really does enrich our learning.”

Standardized Patients enter every encounter with a history of present illness, past medical history, family history, social background information and more. Every case is carefully crafted.

“You really are sort of our first interaction with patient care and how we talk to patients and how we care for patients and I really think that you can shape the way that we treat patients and how we will act as future physicians,” said Sciuva.

The interactions are observed by professors, like Dr. Sheryl Pfeil, Director of the Clinical Skills Education and Assessment Center. She explains that there’s a dual mission. The first is for the students.

“They’re the learners, so they want to be able to demonstrate their skills, practice their skills, and become proficient, right?” Pfeil said. “For the patient, the patient should very much care because when they have physicians or other health care providers who have come through this type of program, they are hopefully receiving better care, physicians who communicate better with them and are proficient at all of the skills that are necessary for a capable health care provider.”

Standardized Patients work with students in a variety of fields including medical, nursing, physical and occupational therapy, nutrition, pharmacy, and more. The actors never break character during an encounter, so there’s typically no interaction with the students outside of the exam room. 

Ambrosio finds it refreshing and validating to hear Sciuva discuss the impact the actors have had on students’ careers. No medical knowledge or prior acting experience is required, so Ambrosio encourages others to consider auditioning.

“You will have a better understanding of how physicians, nurses, other medical professionals think, what you can do to make the most out of your visit when you have an appointment with somebody, the things that you need to do, and overall, that means that it’s going to help your health and for you to better understand some of the challenges that they face in trying to treat you,” she said. 

Find more information about becoming a Standardized Patient at Ohio State University here.

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