<p>Integrating High-Fidelity Simulation into a Medical Cardiovascular Physiology Curriculum</p>

Abstract

Introduction: The challenges of transitioning from basic sciences to clerkships are well identified in medical education. High-fidelity simulations, which have established a track record of improving clinical reasoning and clinical skills, have been proposed as a viable approach to bridge the gap between basic sciences and clerkships. However, little is known about the results of using simulation to address the gap. Methods: In 2018, Morehouse School of Medicine enhanced the first-year cardiovascular physiology curriculum by integrating the high-fidelity simulation iStan into the cardiovascular physiology curriculum, with the purpose of early clinical exposure, cardiovascular concept mastery, and increased clinical associations. The integration included three structural design elements: (a) simulated clinical case introduction; (b) simulated clinical case development; and (c) student-led clinical case study. Results: The first-year medical (MD1) students' cardiovascular physiology learning outcomes have significantly improved compared to the last two cohorts of MD1 students, and the students' test-taking time was significantly reduced compared to the performance of the last two counterpart cohorts. Students reported increased engagement in the simulationenhanced cardiovascular physiology curriculum. Conclusion: The findings provide preliminary evidence to suggest that the structural integration of high-fidelity simulation in the cardiovascular physiology curriculum proved successful in terms of students' learning experience and learning outcomes. The three central elements of high-fidelity simulation integration can inform future endeavor as a structural solution to effectively bridge the gaps between basic science concepts and clinical reasoning by using high-fidelity simulations.

An Alternative to Traditional Bedside Teaching During COVID-19: High-Fidelity Simulation-Based Study

“…The latter propose that students need to be repeatedly exposed to simulation for psychological stability and to develop competence [ 20 ]. These findings are further supported by Zheng et al [ 21 ], where structural integration of high-fidelity simulation in the cardiovascular physiology curriculum for undergraduate medical students proved successful with regards to student’s learning experiences and learning outcomes.…”

“…Simulation-based education is a useful adjunct to traditional teaching modalities providing an immersive and highly interactive learning environment that more accurately reflects the clinical experience [ 9 ]. The use of emergent technology is most likely to be an indispensable component of post–COVID-19 undergraduate medical education [ 21 ].…”

The simulation design in health and nursing: A scoping review

“…In the context of health education, the presence of professors/instructors is highly widespread with different types of intervention depending on the established learning objectives and simulation outcomes (Mills et al, 2016). Yet, it is necessary that in the development and implementation of SBE, the team works in an integrated way with the curriculum aligned to the objectives and the performance of the students (Weis et al, 2018; Zheng et al, 2020).…”

“…Finally, in the scope of theoretical–pedagogical components, the inclusion of SBE in the undergraduate curriculum is a way to improve learning outcomes through the integration between disciplines, the use of different teaching methods and achievement of measurable results established by the professor (Zheng et al, 2020). However, the impact of this curricular integration in the transposition of competences to clinical practice, which is still scarcely explored by studies and, when explored, the assessment is carried out only in a simulated environment (Choi et al, 2020; Tan et al, 2017), representing an important gap for future research.…”