Mån 4 dec / År 41 / Nr 5 2023

Meet the Champions of Medical Simulation

Does it really come as a surprise that a small, Gothenburg-based company would hold a World Champion title in Medical Simulation, if there was such a title to be had? Not when you are aware of the company’s track record and of the expertise embedded at the core.

Mentice may be a small company in terms of numbers but looking past the figures and scrutinising the very essence of what makes Mentice truly unique will provide a good indication of the company’s worth. Mentice is the only company in the world solely dedicated to endovascular medical simulation. Interestingly, the founders of Mentice foresaw future needs in healthcare long before these needs were up for discussion.

Medical simulation is to doctors, what flight simulation is to pilots
Back in 1999, Mentice was founded and the base for the technology used in today’s simulation training systems was created. Mentice is likely to be the only provider of complete simulation technology aimed at endovascular and minimally invasive procedures, with the key mission to provide the means for both safer and more efficient operations through better and more relevant training.
“Simply put, we can compare the need for simulating surgical procedures for training purposes to the importance of flight simulation for pilots. Becoming a pilot for operating commercial flights requires experience. You would never accept pilots to practice while flying real planes with passengers. Simulation has helped making aviations one of the safest environments we have. The same principle should apply to surgeons and physicians. Therefore, at Mentice we strive to provide the simulation systems needed to ensure the very best care for all patients”, explains Göran Malmberg, CEO and President at Mentice.

It is all about improving safety and performance
Endovascular performance can be measured in terms of experience. Straight to the point – you would not trust a pilot without hands-on experience to fly a plane. The simulation training systems delivered by Mentice can significantly improve patient care and safety as they enable medical practitioners to perfect their skills by simulating surgical procedures over and over in an environment safely away from patients. Mentice can also meet a universal challenge in all healthcare, which is comprised by an urgent need to become more efficient and proficient. Hospitals are today under constant pressure to reduce costs and improve their operational efficiency.
“There is a need to relate investments in skills and technology to actual outcomes. As Lean Production-related philosophies are applied even in healthcare, the desire to find more efficient, less time-consuming treatments has become more evident”, Göran Malmberg continues. “Endovascular intervention enables surgeons to reach and treat most vital organs without the need for open surgery. Our role is to provide solutions to ensure correct and reliable training of physicians and related teams”.

Champions of Medical Simulation
By applying simulation systems, time and money can be saved, and more importantly – human lives. Therefore, it is no exaggeration to describe Mentice as a Champion of Medical Simulation. Mentice sets standards high on all accounts. Naturally this also involves employing only the best. And in this case, the best involves an Academy Award winner in simulations used in one of the world’s largest motion pictures, as well as a gold medal winner in the International Mathematical Olympiad.
Mentice has taken a stand and proven to be able to make a difference. The next step is to become more involved in the clinical process, as well as perfecting the systems for training purposes. “Our most important goal for 2020 is to take a larger step for patient-specific simulation and to become a natural and integral part of sales and new treatments for endovascular procedures. This takes us from training and further into the clinical process and allows us to be integrated with other treatment equipment as well”, Göran Malmberg concludes.