SIMBA: Online Simulation for Teaching Medical Cases to Preclinical Students—A Pilot Study

IF 1.4 Q4 MEDICINE, RESEARCH & EXPERIMENTAL Clinical Teacher Pub Date : 2025-03-17 DOI:10.1111/tct.70070

Aditya Swaminathan, Dengyi Zhou, Isabel Allison, Tamzin Ogiliev, Fatema Rezai, Georgia Morgan, Haaziq Sheikh, Farah Abdelhameed, Harjeet Kaur, Alice Yip, Catherine Cooper, Meri Davitadze, Eka Melson, Paul A. Foster, Vivek Dhir, SIMBA and CoMICs team, Punith Kempegowda

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Abstract

Background

Medical education employs diverse teaching strategies, including blending lecture-based learning, small-group teaching (SGT) and, increasingly, simulation-based learning. Nonetheless, limitations in clinical application and participation persist. Simulation via Instant Messaging for Bedside Application (SIMBA) complements these methods by simulating real-world clinical scenarios. This pilot study compares SIMBA's effectiveness with SGT in endocrine topics for medical and pharmacy students.

Methods

The SIMBA for students model was developed using Kern's six-step framework. SIMBA sessions, facilitated by trained moderators and senior experts, simulated outpatient consultations via WhatsApp. The study included SIMBA and SGT sessions from October 2020 to March 2022. Teaching effectiveness was assessed through postsession surveys and multiple-choice questions (MCQs). The study compared the MCQ scores and student satisfaction of SIMBA, SGT and combined SIMBA + SGT cohorts.

Results

One hundred thirty (103 medical and 27 pharmacy) students participated in 14 SIMBA sessions, and 150 students responded to the post-SGT survey, with 38 attending both. Median MCQ scores were higher post-SIMBA (75.0%) compared with post-SGT (60.0%) (p < 0.0001). No significant difference was observed between SIMBA and SIMBA + SGT scores or SGT and SIMBA + SGT scores. SIMBA sessions were perceived as enjoyable (89.2%), intelligible (90.8%), engaging (81.5%), promoted new knowledge (90.0%) and enhanced comprehension (93.9%). 83.1% of students desired SIMBA to complement SGT.

Conclusions

SIMBA demonstrated superior knowledge gain and student satisfaction compared to SGT. Its familiar technology and interactive format suit modern learning, offering a standardised and equitable experience. Integrating SIMBA into the curriculum could help overcome teaching limitations and better prepare students for clinical practice.

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背景医学教育采用了多种教学策略，包括讲授式学习、小组教学（SGT）以及越来越多的模拟学习。然而，临床应用和参与方面的局限性依然存在。床旁应用即时通讯模拟（SIMBA）通过模拟真实世界的临床场景，对上述方法进行了补充。本试验性研究比较了 SIMBA 与 SGT 在医学和药学专业学生内分泌课题中的有效性。方法使用 Kern 的六步框架开发了针对学生的 SIMBA 模型。SIMBA 课程由训练有素的主持人和资深专家主持，通过 WhatsApp 模拟门诊咨询。研究包括 2020 年 10 月至 2022 年 3 月的 SIMBA 和 SGT 课程。教学效果通过课后调查和多项选择题（MCQ）进行评估。研究比较了 SIMBA、SGT 和 SIMBA + SGT 合并课程的 MCQ 分数和学生满意度。结果 130 名学生（103 名医学专业学生和 27 名药学专业学生）参加了 14 次 SIMBA 课程，150 名学生回答了 SGT 课后调查，其中 38 名学生同时参加了这两个课程。SIMBA课程后的MCQ得分中位数（75.0%）高于SGT课程后的得分中位数（60.0%）（p < 0.0001）。在 SIMBA 和 SIMBA + SGT 分数之间或 SGT 和 SIMBA + SGT 分数之间没有观察到明显差异。SIMBA课程被认为是愉快的（89.2%）、易懂的（90.8%）、吸引人的（81.5%）、促进新知识（90.0%）和增强理解力（93.9%）。83.1%的学生希望 SIMBA 与 SGT 相辅相成。结论与 SGT 相比，SIMBA 在知识获取和学生满意度方面都更胜一筹。其熟悉的技术和互动形式适合现代学习，提供了标准化和公平的体验。将 SIMBA 纳入课程有助于克服教学限制，为学生临床实践做好更充分的准备。

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来源期刊

Clinical Teacher MEDICINE, RESEARCH & EXPERIMENTAL-

CiteScore

2.90

自引率

5.60%

发文量

113

期刊介绍： The Clinical Teacher has been designed with the active, practising clinician in mind. It aims to provide a digest of current research, practice and thinking in medical education presented in a readable, stimulating and practical style. The journal includes sections for reviews of the literature relating to clinical teaching bringing authoritative views on the latest thinking about modern teaching. There are also sections on specific teaching approaches, a digest of the latest research published in Medical Education and other teaching journals, reports of initiatives and advances in thinking and practical teaching from around the world, and expert community and discussion on challenging and controversial issues in today"s clinical education.