Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about CAPNO Studio. Something missing? Ask us directly.
What is CAPNO Studio?
CAPNO Studio is an anesthesia simulation lab that runs in a browser. Faculty drive a realistic simulated patient monitor in real time from a controller — vitals, rhythms, and scripted clinical events — while students watch a mirrored full-screen monitor, and every session ends in a scored, printable debrief.
Do students need accounts or app installs?
No. Students open the monitor in any browser and join with a 4-character session code or a link from their instructor. There are no student accounts, no installs, and no IT ticket.
Does it work without Wi-Fi?
Yes. CAPNO Studio is an offline-first progressive web app: scenarios ship inside the app itself, and previously visited views open with no connectivity. A lab room with a single laptop and a projector needs no network at all — sync uses the network only when you configure it.
What devices does it run on?
Any device with a modern browser: iPads and other tablets, laptops, projector PCs, and wall displays. It installs as a progressive web app for a full-screen, app-like experience on the devices your lab already owns.
How do the faculty controller and student monitor stay in sync?
On a single device, windows and tabs sync instantly with zero configuration using the browser’s BroadcastChannel. Configuring an optional Supabase backend enables realtime sync across devices, so session codes work between machines in the room.
Is Capno open source?
Yes. The complete simulator core — monitor, controller, scenario engine, editor, and debrief — is open source under the Apache-2.0 license at github.com/Capno-Labs/capno-core. Capno Labs operates a hosted product built on that same core, unmodified.
What does CAPNO Studio cost?
The self-hosted open-source core is free forever. The hosted product is offered as an annual site license per institution — not per seat — with pricing being finalized with pilot programs. Email hello@capno.app to talk about a pilot.
What scenarios are included?
Twelve reviewed starter scenarios covering core anesthesia emergencies: intraoperative anaphylaxis, laryngospasm after LMA placement, cannot-intubate-cannot-oxygenate, severe bronchospasm, post-induction hypotension, unstable bradycardia, postpartum hemorrhage, venous air embolism, local anesthetic systemic toxicity, malignant hyperthermia, intraoperative myocardial ischemia, and unexplained hypoxemia. Each has a deterioration timeline, treatment responses, and a scoring rubric.
Can we write our own scenarios?
Yes — building your own library is the point. The built-in case editor offers form-based authoring with a live JSON view, validation, version history, and tags. Organize cases into collections that mirror your syllabus, and export a collection with its cases as a single bundle file that another machine or colleague imports in one step. With AI configured, you can also paste a syllabus or lab handout and have scenario drafts generated for faculty review.
What happens after a session?
Every session ends in a structured debrief: a timeline of events and interventions, vitals trends, actions marked done, delayed, or missed with category scores, and suggested debrief questions. Reports print to PDF through the browser and are archived for your program.
Does Capno store patient data?
No. Scenarios are fictional by design and the product stores no protected health information. Learner data is limited to names that faculty may optionally attach to a session debrief.
Can CAPNO Studio be used for clinical care?
No. CAPNO Studio is for simulation and education only. It is not a medical device and must never be used for clinical monitoring or clinical decision-making.
What is the difference between self-hosting and the hosted plan?
The open-source core is the complete simulator, and self-hosting it is free. The hosted plan adds what an institution needs around it: managed hosting, cross-device sync, institution-wide session archives, faculty account management, program analytics with accreditation-ready exports, a growing set of peer-reviewed scenarios to supplement the library you build, and support.
Does Capno use AI?
Only as optional, faculty-side features: AI scenario drafting and a sim co-pilot that suggests actions for the instructor to confirm. In the open-source core these are off until you bring your own API key — unconfigured, there are no AI features and no network calls. The hosted plan includes managed keys, with nothing to configure.
How do we get started?
Self-hosters can clone the repository from GitHub and be running in minutes with npm install and npm run dev. Programs interested in the hosted product can email hello@capno.app to request early access or a pilot.