Medical Pastry: A Key Ingredient in our Recipe for Realistic Training

Medical pastry might sound like an unusual new category from the Great British Bake Off, but this flexible dough has become a key ingredient in our recipe for realistic training.

Made from flour, salt, cream of tartar, oil and food colouring, medical pastry is used to mimic skin, allowing our crew to practice complex medical procedures in realistic scenarios. You might think it sounds like Play-Doh for paramedics, but practicing procedures in this way is anything but child’s play. It helps our crew to be prepared for every eventuality, performing precise procedures when the pressure is on.

Cuts of pork – known as medical meat – have long been used to replicate the feeling of real skin. But they can be expensive, single use, unhygienic, and raise ethical and religious concerns. Medical pastry is a smart alternative – reusable, affordable, and lasts up to three months. A single batch, about the size of a loaf of bread, can be used for multiple training scenarios.

“Sometimes, what’s needed to save a life is surgery right there and then. When crews need to perform what we call high acuity, low occurrence (HALO) surgical procedures, the pressure is on. These types of intervention are often carried out under high stress situations, when every minute matters,” says Critical Care Paramedic, Emma. “That’s why it’s so important we have the chance to practice – not just in theory, but by physically going through each step. We make our simulated scenarios as real as possible for our crew and medical pastry is just one of the ways we can replicate real life inside the training room. With practical training like this, our crews will be as ready as they’ll ever be.”

We make our simulated scenarios as real as possible for our crew and medical pastry is just one of the ways we can replicate real life inside the training room. With practical training like this, our crews will be as ready as they’ll ever be.

One use is training for pre-hospital obstetric emergencies. Medical pastry forms the outer layer of the abdomen, with a balloon simulating the amniotic sac, a red-dyed sponge as the placenta, and silicone for the uterus and umbilical cord. This simple setup helps our crew prepare for rare but life-threatening situations where both the mother and baby may be at serious risk.

It might start with a simple mix of flour and food colouring, but it’s a smart, hands-on innovation that helps our crew prepare for what they could face in a real emergency. Everything we do is to provide the best possible critical care when it matters most.