Temporary Tattoos to Assist in Medical Training

Remedy Simulation Group announced the availability ofPaperCut Trauma Temporary Tattoos for public use in trauma care training.Elizabeth Weissbrod, an employee of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for theAdvancement of Military Medicine (HJF) at the Uniformed Services University(USU), developed these cost and time-saving tattoos at the Val G. HemmingSimulation Center (VGHSC) as part of military trauma care training.

“The concept evolved from an event at the National Museum ofHealth and Medicine involving écorché painting on athletes,” said Weissbrod.“It involves physically painting muscles on the skin of a model so viewers canconnect structure and function to the underlying anatomy. Utilizingcommercially available temporary tattoo paper, we were able to create accurateillustrations that we could quickly apply, decreasing cost and time inconducting this crucial training.”

The tattoo technology was licensed to GA Whiteside LLC andRemedy Simulation LLC through the USU-HJF Joint Office of Technology Transfer.Through an Advanced Medical Technology Initiative Rapid Innovation Funding grant,the VGHSC expanded the number of illustrations to more than 100, depictingvarious injuries and pathologies. Sample tattoos were given to 49 facilities(17 military, 32 civilian). The feedback from these sites assisted in refiningthe illustrations as well as the application and removal instructions.

The tattoos were also submitted in the ProfessionalDimensional Media Category of the 2019 Association of Medical IllustratorsAnnual Salon. They received an award of excellence for being an “illustrationmeeting the highest standards of the profession.”