A medical manikin is a lifelike, synthetic human body like the real-world human body. The purpose of these anatomical models is to allow students to learn and practice complex procedures in a hands-on setting with realistic feedback so that they can be better prepared for upcoming situations as they arise. These practice dummies are used for medical training and teaching. A well-made medical manikin can be highly realistic and can emulate many of the symptoms and reactions that a real patient would show. The degree to which a manikin mimics or reproduces human physiology is called fidelity. A high-fidelity manikin is one that most closely resembles human anatomy such as a manikin that can breathe, have variable heart rates, measurable blood pressure etc. in addition with the help of a computer they also display EKG, arterial waveforms, and pulse oximeter. Low-fidelity manikins are static manikins with little functionality like catheter placement or wound care. Nowadays, medical manikins are computerized with sensors and other monitoring systems that can also give us diagnostic information. The importance of the medical manikin are-

• Eliminates reliance on textbooks and in-class instruction
• Provide realistic and valuable practice opportunities to students, in a safe and controlled environment.
• They allow healthcare professionals to train multiple learners simultaneously, over and over again.
• It can make students more familiar with human shape and structure of the human body and let them make an error before they interact with live patients.
• Provide clinical, emergency, and nursing professionals with the training they need. 

Different types of manikins are- There are various company like CAE healthcare, Otosim, Voxel-Man, trucorp etc which offers a wide variety of medical manikin like infant stimulator, paediatric patient stimulator, emergency care manikin, female patient simulator etc. Now. Let us see some of them.

1. Infant simulator manikin- It offers essential training and medical treatment of a neonate in crisis.

2. Airway Management simulators manikin- It provides a detailed anatomical picture of the bronchial tree, blood vessels, main bronchus and oral or nasal pharyngeal spaces etc.

3. Life support simulator manikin- Basic life support and CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation) manikin help the instructor to train students to save lives through correct cardiac massage.

4. Female catheterization simulator manikin- offers simulators with a bladder reservoir, patient urethra, and a valve which allow demonstration and practice in urinary catheterization.

5. Birthing simulator manikin- trains doctors for normal deliveries, complicated deliveries and in obstetric emergencies and develops their delivery skills.

6. Patient care manikin- It provides training in basic to advance nursing skills. it is like real patients with the movement of hands, arms, legs and with interchangeable genitals.

So, there are several other manikins which are specially designed to meet the training needs of professionals in emergency, clinical and nursing departments. Nursing and emergency setting help in teaching patient care procedures like bathing techniques, bandaging, NG tube placement, intramuscular injection and many more. And clinically-focused Medical Manikins will focus on basic clinical skills like transferring, bathing, skin inspection, behavioural changes etc. As, the demand for professionals has increased also let the advancement of technology and the company to develop medical manikins for education, research, and more comprehensive training. The real benefit of these advanced technologies will help learners to practice in any field like paediatric care, adult-patient care, infant care, geriatric care, hospital training or obstetrics which will ensure that they are skilled and ready to assist actual patients. Further, the medical manikin's curriculum implementation in secondary schools, colleges, and universities has also begun. -MUSKAN JAIN