Transitioning preclinical students into clerkships amidst curricular disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic

Realistic simulation case scenario as a vertical integration teaching tool for medical students: A mixed methods study

Realistic simulation-based learning has recently become an integral part of medical education and can provide several advantages if applied effectively. This study aimed to develop and validate a realistic simulation case scenario (RSCS) as a novel teaching tool for preclinical medical students. Furthermore, we aimed to evaluate student perception of this tool as a teaching strategy, as well as to acquire an in-depth understanding of student perspectives. We employed the mixed methods approach to explore how clinical reasoning develops through a validated RSCS. This study, which included 50 third-year medical students, was conducted at the College of Medicine, Dar Al Uloom University, KSA between November 2021 and February 2022. Most of the participants (94%) were satisfied with the RSCS method and 92% of the participants reported RSCS as more effective in terms of achieving learning objectives. Many advantages of RSCS have been reported, including the provision of realistic knowledge relating to critical care management, encouraging student participation in the learning process, and enhancing interpersonal and problem-solving skills. In conclusion, RSCS is an effective and dynamic teaching approach that aids in knowledge consolidation with a significant impact on the emotions and cognitive abilities of students.

Video-Based Stop the Bleed Training: A New Era in Education

INTRODUCTION

Uncontrolled bleeding is a leading cause of preventable death. The "Stop the Bleed" (StB) program trains laypersons in hemorrhage control. This study evaluated the efficacy of video-based StB training.

METHODS

Participants watched two different videos: a didactic video (DdV) and a technical video (TeV) demonstrating proper techniques for StB skills (i.e., direct pressure [DP], wound packing [WP], and tourniquet application [TA]). Then, they completed a standardized skills examination (SE). Participants were surveyed at three different time points (baseline, post-DdV, and post-SE) for comparison. We compared paired categorical and continuous variables with the McNemar-Bowker test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test, respectively. Alpha was set at 0.05.

RESULTS

One hundred six participants were enrolled: 52% were female and the median age was 23 y (22, 24). At baseline, 29%, 8%, and 13% reported being somewhat or extremely confident with DP, WP, and TA, respectively. These percentages increased to 92%, 79%, and 76%, respectively, after the DdV (all, P < 0.0001). After the TeV and SE, percentages increased further to 100%, 96%, and 100% (all, P < 0.0001). During the SE, 96%, 99%, and 89% of participants were able to perform DP, WP, and TA without prompting. Among participants, 98% agreed that the video course was effective and 79% agreed that the DdV and TeV were engaging.

CONCLUSIONS

We describe a novel paradigm of video-based StB learning combined with an in-person, standardized SE. Confidence scores in performing the three crucial StB tasks increased significantly during and after course completion. Through remote learning, StB could be disseminated more widely.