Relationship between Executive Functions, Mindfulness, Stress, and Performance in Pediatric Emergency Simulations

Abstract

Over the past decade, high-fidelity medical simulation has become an accepted and widely used teaching method in pediatrics. Both simulation and work in the real conditions of emergency departments are accompanied by stress that affects the executive functions of participants. One of the methods for reducing stress among medical students and healthcare professionals is the practice of mindfulness. The aim of this study was to examine whether executive functions, mindfulness, and stress are related to the technical and non-technical skills of medical students participating in medical simulations in pediatrics. The study included 153 final-year medical students. A total of 306 high-fidelity simulations of life-threatening situations involving children were conducted. Results: Stress and the coping mechanism of the participants were correlated to their skills during pediatric simulations. Some components of mindfulness, such as non-judgment and conscious action, were positively related to the skills of medical team leaders. Executive functions correlated with the non-technical skills and mindfulness of the medical students. Conclusions: Stress, mindfulness, and executive functions modeled the behavior and skills of medical students during pediatric simulations of life-threatening events. Further research in this area may prove whether mindfulness training will improve learning outcomes in pediatric emergency medicine.

Mindfulness Is Related to the Situational Awareness of Medical Students Confronted with Life-Threatening Emergency Situations

“…The simulations were constructed as high-fidelity scenarios in life-threatening situations in children and adults, as previously described [ 6 ]. Each scenario had one technical and one non-technical goal.…”

“…The third level (projection) involves predicting possible scenarios and considering alternative actions and steps [ 5 ]. According to our assessments, SA is the lowest-rated non-technical skill of final-year medical students during simulations [ 6 ]. This phenomenon has been observed over the last three years, most likely due to the lack of appropriate prior training.…”

“…We previously demonstrated that mindfulness is associated with students’ SA during a high-fidelity simulation when assessed indirectly and subjectively at a general level using the Ottawa scale [ 6 ]. In the present study, we aimed to investigate whether mindfulness is related to the SA levels among final-year medical students confronted with life-threatening situations using direct and objective methods, and a simulation freeze technique.…”

Interesting read

“…The article by Lottspeich et al [ 8 ] explains how the central competence of ward rounds can be taught in a structured way and presents guidelines for establishing such a course. The article by Łoś et al [ 9 ] examines the extent to which technical and non-technical skills of medical students in a paediatric emergency course with high-fidelity simulations are related to mindfulness and stress. The article by Kasselmann et al [ 10 ] presents the (sobering) results of a nationwide survey on the implementation of disaster medicine offerings in medical school.…”

The Executive Skills Questionnaire-Revised: Adaptation and Psychometric Properties in the Working Context of Malaysia

“…EFs are a control mechanism that work in regulating human cognition and behaviors [2] and are necessary when an individual wants to exercise higher cognitive skills. Studies have shown that EFs are positively associated with well-being (e.g., [3,4]), mindfulness [5], and resilience [6], and negatively associated mental health (e.g., [7]), just to name a few.…”