Important Information Before You Start

The Usage area in SimCapture Reports helps you understand how your simulation environment is being used over time . These reports focus on activity and engagement —not grading or performance outcomes.

Use Usage reports to answer questions like:

• How often is SimCapture being used?
• Which programs, courses, or centers are most active?
• Are learner and faculty engagement increasing or decreasing over time?

What the Usage Area Is (and Is Not)

What Usage Reports Show

Usage reports highlight operational and engagement metrics , including:

• Sessions run
• Learner participation
• Recorded hours
• Annotation activity
• Center sign‑in time
• SimCapture for Skills activity

Usage reports are commonly used for:

• Program‑level utilization tracking
• Operational and capacity planning
• Leadership and ROI discussions
• Accreditation and compliance reporting

What Usage Reports Do Not Show

If you need outcome‑based data:

• Use Evaluation reports for assessment results
• Use Performance reports for scoring and competency data

How to Access Usage Reports

1. Select Reports from the global navigation bar
2. Open the Usage section of the reporting dashboard
3. Use available filters—such as Course , Participants , or Organization —to refine the data
4. View summary metrics on screen or export detailed results to Excel for further analysis

Each Usage report includes a title and subtitle explaining what is being measured and how the data is calculated.

Usage Report Metrics Explained

Number of Sessions

What it measures
The total number of simulation sessions completed during the selected date range.

How it’s calculated
Each completed session is counted once within the selected time period.

Why this is useful

• Track overall simulation volume
• Identify usage trends
• Support staffing and scheduling decisions

Learner Contact Hours

What it measures
The total amount of time learners are engaged in simulation sessions.

How it’s calculated
Session duration × number of participants.

Why this is useful

• Support accreditation and regulatory reporting
• Demonstrate instructional exposure
• Quantify overall program engagement

Recorded Hours

What it measures
The total amount of time recorded across all sessions.

How it’s calculated
The sum of recorded session durations during the selected period.

Why this is useful

• Understand recording system utilization
• Identify growth or declines in recorded activity
• Support infrastructure and storage planning

Annotations

What it measures

• Annotation activity during recorded sessions.

What’s included

• Total number of annotations
• Percentage of sessions that include at least one annotation

Why this is useful

• Measure engagement during debriefing
• Understand how faculty and learners interact with recordings
• Identify opportunities to increase reflective learning

Center Sign‑In Hours

What it measures
The total amount of time users are signed in using Center Sign‑In .

Important distinction
Center Sign‑In hours are not tied to sessions or recordings . They represent presence , not simulation activity.

Why this is useful

• Support facility and space utilization discussions
• Understand overall center usage independent of recorded simulations

SimCapture for Skills Usage

This section focuses on self‑directed and skills‑based practice , which is reported separately from traditional scheduled simulations.

Included session types:

• Peer‑to‑Peer
• Self‑Record
• Self‑Learning

These reports help administrators understand how learners engage in independent practice and skill development .

For detailed guidance, see  SimCapture Enterprise: Skills Utilization  .

Filters and Display Options

Most Usage reports support:

• Time views: Daily, weekly, or monthly
• Date ranges: Last 30 days, Last 90 days, Year‑to‑Date, All‑Time, or Custom
• Contextual filters: Course, Organization, Users, Location (availability varies by report)

These filters allow you to tailor reports for leadership summaries, accreditation reviews, or operational planning .

When to Use the Usage Area

Use Usage reports when you need to understand:

• How frequently SimCapture is used
• Where simulation activity is increasing or decreasing
• How learners and faculty engage with recordings and annotations
• How effectively center and program resources are utilized

Do not use Usage reports when you need:

• Grades or scores
• Competency or performance outcomes

Need Help?

If you need help:

• Exporting Usage reports
• Applying or interpreting filters
• Understanding how metrics are calculated

Contact your System Administrator or the Laerdal Support Team for assistance.