Background: Simulation-based learning (SBL) has been increasingly used in both undergraduate and postgraduate medical training curricula. The aim of Simulation via Instant Messaging-Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) is to create a simple virtual learning environment to improve trainees' self-reported confidence in diabetes and Endocrinology. Methods: This study was done as part of the continuous professional development for Health Education England West Midlands speciality trainees in diabetes and Endocrinology. Standardized transcripts of anonymized real-life endocrinology (endocrine session) and diabetes cases (diabetes session) were used in the simulation model. Trainees interacted with moderators through WhatsApp® in this model. All cases were then discussed in detail by a consultant endocrinologist with reference to local, national and international guidelines. Trainee acceptance rate and improvement in their self-reported confidence levels post-simulation were assessed. Results: 70.8% (n = 17/24) and 75% (n = 18/24) strongly agreed the simulation session accommodated their personal learning style and the session was engaging. 66.7% (n = 16/24) strongly felt that the simulation was worth their time. In the endocrine session, there was a significant improvement in trainees' confidence in the management of craniopharyngioma (p = 0.0179) and acromegaly (p = 0.0025). There was a trend towards improved confidence levels to manage Cushing's disease and macroprolactinoma. In diabetes session, there was a significant improvement in trainees' confidence to interpret continuous glucose monitor readings (p = 0.01). There was a trend towards improvement for managing monogenic diabetes, hypoglycaemic unawareness and interpreting Libre readings. Overall, there was a significant improvement in trainees' confidence in managing cases that were discussed post-simulation.
Background Simulation via Instant Messaging - Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) aimed to improve clinicians’ confidence in managing various clinical scenarios during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Five SIMBA sessions were conducted between May and August 2020. Each session included simulation of scenarios and interactive discussion. Participants’ self-reported confidence, acceptance, and relevance of the simulated cases were measured. Results Significant improvement was observed in participants’ self-reported confidence (overall n = 204, p<0.001; adrenal n = 33, p<0.001; thyroid n = 37, p<0.001; pituitary n = 79, p<0.001; inflammatory bowel disease n = 17, p<0.001; acute medicine n = 38, p<0.001). Participants reported improvements in clinical competencies: patient care 52.0% (n = 106/204), professionalism 30.9% (n = 63/204), knowledge on patient management 84.8% (n = 173/204), systems-based practice 48.0% (n = 98/204), practice-based learning 69.6% (n = 142/204) and communication skills 25.5% (n = 52/204). Conclusion SIMBA is a novel pedagogical virtual simulation-based learning model that improves clinicians’ confidence in managing conditions across various specialties.
Introduction: Simulation-based learning (SBL) has been increasingly used in both undergraduate and postgraduate medical training curricula. The aim of Simulation via Instant Messaging-Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) is to create a simple virtual learning environment to improve trainees’ self-reported confidence in diabetes and Endocrinology. Methods: This study was done as part of the continuous professional development for Health Education England West Midlands specialty trainees in diabetes and Endocrinology. Standardized transcripts of anonymized real-life endocrinology (endocrine session) and diabetes cases (diabetes session) were used in the simulation model. Trainees interacted with moderators through WhatsApp® in this model. All cases were then discussed in detail by a consultant endocrinologist with reference to local, national and international guidelines. Trainee acceptance rate and improvement in their self-reported confidence levels post-simulation were assessed.Results: 70.8% (n=17/24) and 75% (n=18/24) strongly agreed the simulation session accommodated their personal learning style and the session was engaging. 66.7% (n=16/24) strongly felt that the simulation was worth their time. In endocrine session, there was a significant improvement in trainees’ confidence in the management of craniopharyngioma (p=0.0179) and acromegaly (p=0.0025). There was a trend towards improved confidence levels to manage Cushing’s disease and macroprolactinoma. In diabetes session, there was a significant improvement in trainees’ confidence to interpret continuous glucose monitor readings (p = 0.01). There was a trend towards improvement for managing monogenic diabetes, hypoglycaemic unawareness and interpreting Libre readings. Overall, there was a significant improvement in trainees’ confidence in managing cases that were discussed post-simulation. Conclusion: SIMBA is an effective learning model to improve trainees’ confidence to manage various diabetes and endocrine case scenarios. More sessions with a variety of other specialty case scenarios is needed to further assess SIMBA’s effectiveness and application in other areas of medical training.
Background Simulation via Instant Messaging- Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) delivers simulation-based learning (SBL) through WhatsApp® and Zoom® based on Kolb’s experiential learning theory. This study describes how Kolb’s theory was implemented in practice during SIMBA adrenal session. Methods SIMBA adrenal session was conducted for healthcare professionals and replicated Kolb’s 4-stage cycle: (a) concrete experience—online simulation of real-life clinical scenarios, (b) reflective observation—discussion and Q&A following simulation, (c) abstract conceptualisation—post-session MCQs, and (d) active experimentation—intentions to implement the acquired knowledge in future practice. Participants’ self-reported confidence levels for simulated and non-simulated cases pre- and post-SIMBA were analysed using Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test. Key takeaway and feedback were assessed quantitatively and qualitatively in a thematic analysis. Results Thirty-three participants were included in the analysis. A Wilcoxon signed-rank test showed that the SIMBA session elicited a statistically significant change in participants’ self-reported confidence in their approach to Cushing’s syndrome (Z = 3.873, p = 0.0001) and adrenocortical carcinoma (Z = 3.970, p < 0.0001). 93.9% (n = 31/33) and 84.8% (n = 28/33) strongly agreed/agreed the topics were applicable to their clinical practice and accommodated their personal learning style, respectively. 81.8% (n = 27/33) reported increase in knowledge on patient management, and 75.8% (n = 25/33) anticipated implementing learning points in their practice. Conclusions SIMBA effectively adopts Kolb’s theory to provide best possible experience to learners, highlighting the advantages of utilising social media platforms for SBL in medical education. The ability to conduct SIMBA sessions at modest cost internationally paves way to engage more healthcare professionals worldwide.
Background and objectiveAlthough significant resources are invested each September for PCOS Awareness Month campaign, there are no studies measuring its impact. We evaluated the digital impact of PCOS Awareness Month, common themes and associated topics, top influencers, and global equity of influence during the PCOS Awareness month.MethodsIn this serial cross-sectional analysis, we studied the outputs from Symplur® to study the total impressions of #PCOS on Twitter®. We tracked the hashtags—#PCOS, #PCOSawarenessmonth, #PCOSawareness—and a search query— “#PCOS OR #PCOSawarenessmonth OR #PCOSawareness”—using Sproutsocial® to study the total number of tweets related to PCOS Awareness Month. Network analysis was done using SocioViz® to identify common themes and associated topics. Using SymplurRank® machine learning algorithm, the top 10 #PCOS influencers were identified based on the number of mentions received. Google® Trends was used to study the web and news search popularity over the last 10 years beyond social media platforms.ResultsAn overall upward trend in the digital impact of PCOS awareness was noted since 2017. While the top themes associated with PCOS (insulin resistance, depression, anxiety, menopause, hormones, infertility) remained the same in 2021 and 2022, newer themes emerged in the latter year suggesting the need for ongoing review. News outlets were the most influential organisations during PCOS Awareness Month in both years of study. Seven of the top 10 users were the same in both years. Limited engagement from African, Asian, South American, and non-English speaking European countries was seen on Google Trends analysis.ConclusionActive involvement from various stakeholders of PCOS Awareness Month has shaped it into an effective strategy to raise awareness with social media playing a crucial role in amplifying the message. Our findings also provide an opportunity to understand the current perceptions and expectations amongst the public, which can influence future healthcare investment and research.
Simulation-based learning (SBL) is well-established in medical education and has gained popularity, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when in-person teaching is infeasible. SBL replicates real-life scenarios and provides a fully immersive yet safe learning environment to develop clinical competency. Simulation via Instant Messaging – Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) is an exemplar of SBL, which we previously showed to be effective in endocrinology and diabetes. Previous studies reported the efficacy of SBL in acute medicine. We studied SIMBA as a learning intervention for healthcare professionals interested in acute medicine and defined our aims using the Kirkpatrick model: (i) develop an SBL tool to improve case management; (ii) evaluate experiences and confidence before and after; and (iii) compare efficacy across training levels.Three sessions were conducted, each representing a PDSA cycle (Plan-Do-Study-Act), consisting of four cases and advertised to healthcare professionals at our hospital and social media. Moderators facilitated progression through 25 min simulations and adopted patient and clinical roles as appropriate. Consultants chaired discussion sessions using relevant guidelines. Presimulation and postsimulation questionnaires evaluated self-reported confidence, feedback and intended changes to clinical practice.Improvements were observed in self-reported confidence managing simulated cases across all sessions. Of participants, 93.3% found SIMBA applicable to clinical practice, while 89.3% and 88.0% felt SIMBA aided personal and professional development, respectively. Interestingly, 68.0% preferred SIMBA to traditional teaching methods. Following participant feedback, more challenging cases were included, and we extended the time for simulation and discussion. The transcripts were amended to facilitate more participant-moderator interaction representing clinical practice. In addition, we refined participant recruitment over the three sessions. In cycle 1, we advertised incentives: participation counted towards teaching requirements, certificates and feedback. To rectify the reduction in participants in cycle 2, we implemented new advertisement methods in cycle 3, including on-site posters, reminder emails and recruitment of the defence deanery cohort.
IntroductionThe aim of the study was to identify available polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) models of care (MoCs) and describe their characteristics and alignment with the international PCOS guideline.MethodsOvid MEDLINE, All EBM, PsycINFO, Embase, and CINAHL were searched from inception until 11 July 2022. Any study with a description of a PCOS MoC was included. Non-evidence-based guidelines, abstracts, study protocols, and clinical trial registrations were excluded. We also excluded MoCs delivered in research settings to minimize care bias. Meta-analysis was not performed due to heterogeneity across MoCs. We describe and evaluate each MoC based on the recommendations made by the international evidence-based guideline for assessing and managing PCOS.ResultsOf 3,671 articles, six articles describing five MoCs were included in our systematic review. All MoCs described a multidisciplinary approach, including an endocrinologist, dietitian, gynecologist, psychologist, dermatologist, etc. Three MoCs described all aspects of PCOS care aligned with the international guideline recommendations. These include providing education on long-term risks, lifestyle interventions, screening and management of emotional well-being, cardiometabolic diseases, and the dermatological and reproductive elements of PCOS. Three MoCs evaluated patients’ and healthcare professionals’ satisfaction, with generally positive findings. Only one MoC explored the impact of their service on patients’ health outcomes and showed improvement in BMI.ConclusionThere is limited literature describing PCOS MoCs in routine practice. Future research should explore developing cost-effective co-created multidisciplinary PCOS MoCs globally. This may be facilitated by the exchange of best practices between institutions with an established MoC and those who are interested in setting one up.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=346539, identifier CRD42022346539.
Work experience is considered as a vital part of an application to medical school and other healthcare-related educational programmes. Gaining clinical work experience via various previously available opportunities from healthcare centres has currently become more challenging and less accessible due to the COVID-19 pandemic-related limitations and resource shortages. In order to provide experience in the healthcare field, we conducted a case study by inviting two secondary school students to participate in Simulation via Instant Messaging-Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) as moderators. Despite no previous clinical knowledge, they found it accessible and to be an excellent alternative to the more traditional types of work experience, which had become unavailable to them. We, therefore, propose SIMBA can act as an alternative and/or an adjunct to work experience for healthcare-related courses.
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