In recent years, the demand for skilled psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals has grown significantly. Traditional methods of clinical training rely on experienced clinicians to observe trainees interacting with patients and providing clinical feedback that supports a trainee’s development of clinical skills in real time. This approach is labor intensive and relies on encountering patients with specific clinical problems at the right moment, making it hard to replicate the complexities of real-world clinical scenarios effectively and efficiently.

With a generous gift from the Erick Shirley Foundation for Mental Health and in partnership with colleagues at the Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering at UW, we are embarking on the development of a unique Simulation Training Laboratory that will utilize state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to enhance the training of medical students, psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals. The laboratory will provide realistic, interactive simulations of patients and clinical scenarios, enabling trainees to gain valuable experience in patient engagement, diagnosis, therapeutic decision-making, and treatment before they begin interactions with patients in diverse clinical settings.

For the next two years, support from the Erick Shirley Foundation will allow us to develop and implement this innovative simulation training laboratory at UW Medicine. By integrating AI and immersive technologies, this project will create a cutting-edge educational environment that can prepare clinicians, caregivers, and family members to handle the diverse, complex challenges they will encounter in real-world clinical settings. Thank you to the Erick Shirley Foundation for supporting this unique opportunity.