• Authors

    Jeanne and Kaaren with a Manikin

    Kaaren Harris

    Kaaren Harris is a Simulation Specialist at Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota.

    “I love these high fidelity manikins and making moulage for them. A few years ago, Jeanne Cleary asked me to play with her dolls and run a few simulation scenarios. Coming for an ICCU background, where there is high risk, low occurrence events, I found simulation a great way to keep up necessary skills. And then I discovered moulage. I love to cook. I have a slightly left of center sense of humor and I love the technology involved in running the manikins.

    “I recently retired from bedside nursing after 44 years. I spent most of my career working in the ICCU unit at Rice Memorial Hospital in Willmar, Minnesota. I am a diploma graduate from The Kings County Hospital Center School of Nursing in Brooklyn, New York. I have a BS in Psychology and a MEd in Vocational Rehab from The Pennsylvania State University. I am also a CCRN with 37 years of experience in critical care. How in the world did I get to Minnesota ? Well I married a Minnesota boy who had to come home.

    Jeanne Cleary

    Jeanne Cleary is the Director of Healthcare Simulation at Ridgewater College in Willmar, MN.

    “I never dreamt that my future in nursing would be role-play simulation! I started working in the simulation lab at Ridgewater College and asked my friend and colleague, Kaaren Harris, to join me. That was the beginning of our stand-up comedy show “The Martha Stewart’s of Moulage!” I love to present learners with a challenging, high-risk situation that they will someday face in the workplace. Here in the lab, students can have both a real-life experience and a “safe place to fail.” With simulation, the first time a student does a procedure on a REAL patient doesn’t have to be the FIRST TIME THEY HAVE DONE IT!

    “I am a lifelong learner and gourmet cook. I started my nursing career as an LPN, 30 years ago. I received my ADN from Ridgewater College in 1983. I received both my BSN and then my Master’s in Nursing Education from Bethel University, St. Paul, MN. I have experience working in Critical Care areas such as ICU, telemetry, Cardiac Cath Lab, and PACU.

    Fun Facts:

    Kaaren and Jeanne love to show off their cooking skills by having a Christmas Tea for friends and co-workers. For the next party, they plan to invite all the simulation dolls to a baby shower for SIM NEWBIE, affectionately named “Danyell”, after another SIM expert. (Yes, you Dan).