Web-based Platform as a Digital Confluence: Narrative Review of Games and Social Media in Medical Education (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND The evolution of the internet in the early 21st century was marked by a seismic shift in the user's role. It comes as no surprise that medical educators and students would come to embrace the more active role afforded by this sea change. Social media has empowered the user with virtually limitless ways to create and engage with information, and serious games have been shown to enhance learner engagement and satisfaction. This appears to set the stage for a web-based learning platform that combines elements of both games and social media. OBJECTIVE This review details recent online trends in medical education against a broader narrative of increasing user participation on web applications. Specifically, this review is concerned with whether threads of games and social media could be woven into the fabric of a more comprehensive learning platform, and the potential of this platform for training healthcare professionals. METHODS A literature review was conducted between July and August of 2024 using PubMed and Google Scholar for all English-language papers going back 10 years. Articles that described use of social media among students and trainees, as well as those that studied the effectiveness of games and other electronic media, were included. Articles were excluded if full text was not available, or if their primary concern was patient self-management or other patient outcomes, as the primary focus of this review is use of these approaches in medical education. RESULTS The literature search revealed 219 references. After comprehensive review, 15 studies of various designs were highlighted. Themes in social media that emerged were asynchronous learning preferences and reliability concerns. Themes in game-based learning were game balance and immersivity. CONCLUSIONS Research on games and social media in medical education is flourishing. As such, exciting opportunities exist to identify new teaching methods. The most effective elements to achieve a balanced curriculum are being identified. Dedicated medical learning platforms, integrated with existing programs of study and administered at the university level, may strike the perfect chord.