Central Line Simulation

Problem / Research Question

How can we train physicians to place central venous catheters safely and consistently — before they ever touch a patient?

Why It Matters

Mechanical complications such as arterial puncture, pneumothorax, and failed needle insertion are common in central line placement and put patients at serious risk. Better, objective training directly reduces preventable harm.

What britelab Is Doing

Successful training of medical residents to perform Central Venous Catheter (CVC) placement is of critical importance to ensure patient safety. Mechanical complications including arterial puncture, pneumothorax, hemothorax, and failed puncture commonly occur in CVC procedures. This project develops, explores the effectiveness, and implements the novel training method of dynamic haptic robotic training (DHRT) — utilizing a commercially available haptic robot programmed to apply forces to the resident's hand to mimic actual needle insertion.

• Develop dynamic haptic robotic training for CVC placement
• Reduce mechanical complication rates at partner hospitals
• Integrate AI/ML for automated real-time performance assessment
• Scale training across multiple hospitals including Hershey Medical Center and Cedars Sinai

Methods & Technology

Research Team

• Dr. Scarlett Miller (PI)
• Dr. Jason Moore (PI)
• Yuyuan Cao

  PhD Student, Industrial Engineering

Alumni

• Dr. Jessica González Vargas

  Asst. Professor, Mississippi State University

• Dr. Haroula Tzamaras

  Human Factors Engineer, CarliMed

• Dr. Hong-En Chen

  Human-Performance Engineer, Exponent

• Dr. Mary Yovanoff

Funding Agency

Collaborators

• Dr. Sanjib Adhikary

  Penn State Health

• Dr. Philip Ng

  Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

• Dr. Lisa Sinz

  West Virginia University Medicine

• Dr. David Han

  Past collaborator · Professor Emeritus, Surgery & Radiology, Penn State

Partner Sites

• Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
• Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
• WVU Medicine

Outcomes / Impact

Over 1,000 physicians trained to date with 200 new physicians trained annually. Published research demonstrates significant reduction in placement errors and complications including infections and blood clots.

Related Publications

• Central Lines Project — Medical Simulation Lab

Related News

• $3.7M NIH grant to further improve patient safety in central line placements

  Penn State News · Oct 15, 2026

• Novel robotic training program reduces physician errors placing central lines

  Penn State News · Apr 17, 2024

• Penn State researchers showcase lifesaving medical technology

  WTAJ · Apr 24, 2020

• Robotic training could help to decrease catheter placement complications

  Penn State Health News · Oct 25, 2019

• Dynamic haptic robotic training to decrease catheter procedure complications

  Newswise · Oct 22, 2019

• Medulate wins top prize at TechCelerator graduation

  Centre Daily Times · Dec 11, 2018

• New needle simulator could train medical students to have a steady hand

  Smithsonian Magazine · Jul 5, 2018

• Low-cost needle simulator aims to revolutionize medical training

  Penn State News · Jul 5, 2018

• NIH grant will support robotic training for catheter insertion

  Penn State News · Mar 27, 2015