EP.TU.566Virtual Interactive surgical skills classroom – An Ongoing Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Introduction High costs and inaccessibility are significant barriers to face-to-face basic surgical skills (BSS) training. Virtual classrooms enable the combination of computer-based learning with interactive expert instruction. They may optimise resources and increase accessibility, facilitating larger-scale training with a similar educational benefit. We aim to evaluate the efficacy of virtual BSS classroom training compared to both non-interactive video and face-to-face teaching. Method 72 medical students will be randomly assigned to three equal intervention groups based on year group and surgical skill confidence. Interventions will be implemented following an instructional video. Group A will practice independently, Group B will receive face-to-face training, and Group C will attend a virtual classroom. Participants will be recorded placing three interrupted sutures with hand tied knots pre- and post-intervention, and Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) will be blind marked by two experts. Change in confidence, time to completion and a granular performance score will also be measured. Each intervention’s feasibility and accessibility will be assessed. Results Data collection will be completed in February 2021. Significant improvement in OSATS within groups will be indicative of intervention quality. Difference in improvement between groups will determine the relative performance of the interventions. Conclusion To our knowledge, this will be the largest randomised control trial investigating virtual BSS classroom training. It will serve as a comprehensive appraisal of the virtual classroom’s suitability as an alternative to face-to-face training. The findings will assist the development of further resource-efficient training programs during the COVID-19 pandemic and afterwards.

COVID-19 impact on the assessment methodology of undergraduate medical students: a systematic review of the lessons learned

“…Age and student gender were not always mentioned in the studies. From the 6 studies where age was mentioned, the mean age of the participants was 23 years old (Co et al, 2021;Hanafy et al, 2021;Kronenfeld et al, 2021;Suwannaphisit et al, 2021;Co and Chu, 2022;Nathan et al, 2022).…”

“…Concerning gender, it was only mentioned in 5 of the 18 studies (Co et al, 2021;Hanafy et al, 2021;Suwannaphisit et al, 2021;Co and Chu, 2022) (Nathan et al, 2022). In three, most participants were male, while in the other two, the majority were female.…”

“…No investigation was conducted explicitly with 2nd and 4th-year medical students. One study included medical students from all year groups (Nathan et al, 2022), and another had students from the 1st and 3rd academic years (Elzainy et al, 2020).…”

“…Eleven studies were conducted in an online learning environment (Alkhowailed et al, 2020;Elzainy et al, 2020;Blythe et al, 2021;Co et al, 2021;Hernandez et al, 2021;Kronenfeld et al, 2021;Prigoff et al, 2021;Shaiba et al, 2021;Yuda Handaya et al, 2021;Chaudhuri et al, 2022;Minty et al, 2022), while the other 7 had a mix of online learning and face to face encounters (especially with students on clinical practice academical years) (Adeleke et al, 2020;Hanafy et al, 2021;Hope et al, 2021;Suwannaphisit et al, 2021;Aaraj et al, 2022;Co and Chu, 2022;Nathan et al, 2022). As expected, because of the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, no study had a just face-to-face traditional teaching methodology.…”

“…New teaching methodologies included: online lectures (recorded or live), live meetings, video interpretation (Suwannaphisit et al, 2021), simulation (Mileder et al, 2021;Palés-Argullós and Gomar-Sancho, 2021), Mixed reality (MR) (Minty et al, 2022) and Virtual Classroom Training (VCT) (Nathan et al, 2022).…”