Health Sciences Education Symposium
Presentation Format
Poster
Type of Activity
Research
Original Presentation Date
2017
Date of Submission
May 2017
Abstract/Short Description
Virtual patients (VPs) are used for developing clinical reasoning which is an area of deficit in medical trainees. There are a number of studies showing that virtual patients have a positive effect on clinical reasoning skills but it remains uncertain how to best design or utilize VPs. Reasons for this include broad definitions of VPs, prior studies with poor descriptions of their design, and few studies looking at which design features are most efficacious. In this study on effective VP design, I outline the direct evidence from prior studies on VPs and indirect evidence from studies of other e-learning methods and educational theory. From this outline, A set of guidelines are proposed for developing VPs and create a blueprint for a design based on these principles.
Purpose/Research Question
To determine which virtual patient design features are effective and create a blueprint based on this information.
Objectives
Determine effective virtual patient design features
Create a blueprint design for a virtual patient
References
1. Heist, B.S., et al. (2016). Virtual patients to explore and develop clinical case summary statement skills amongst Japanese resident physicians: a mixed methods study. BMC Medical Education, 16(39).
2. Botezatu, M., Hakan, H., & Fors, U.G. (2010). Virtual patient simulation: what do students make of it? A focus group study. BMC Medical Education, 10(91).
3. Bateman, J. et al. (2013). Virtual patient design: exploring what works and why. A grounded theory study. Medical Education, 47, pp. 595–606.
4. Pinnock, R. et al. (2012). evPaeds: undergraduate clinical reasoning. The Clinical Teacher, 9 pp.152-157.
5. Posel, N., Mcgee, J.B., & Fleiszer, D.M. (2015). Twelve tips to support the development of clinical reasoning skills using virtual patient cases. Medical Teacher, 37(9), pp.813-818.
6. Campbell, G., Miller, A., & Balasubramaniam, C. (2009). The role of intellectual property in creation, sharing, and repurposing virtual patients. Medical Teacher, 31, pp.709-712.
7. Berman, N.B., et al. (2016). The Role for Virtual Patients in the Future of Medical Education. Academic Medicine, 91, pp.1217-1222.
8. Poulton, T., et al. (2009). The replacement of ‘paper’ cases by interactive online virtual patients in problem-based learning. Medical Teacher, 31, pp.752-758.
9. Liu, Q. et al. (2016). The Effectiveness of Blended Learning in Health Professions: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 18(1):e2 .
10. Smith, S. et al. (2016). The Development and Preliminary Validation of a Rubric to Assess Medical Students’ Written Summary Statements in Virtual Patient Cases. Academic Medicine, 91, pp.94-100.
11. Cook D., & Triola M. (2009). Virtual patients: a critical literature review and proposed next steps. Medical Education, 43, pp.303-311.
12. Bloice, M.D., Simonic, K., & Holzinger, A. (2013). On the usage of health records for the design of virtual patients: a systematic review. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making , 13(103).
13. Rasmussen, K., et al. (2014). Offline eLearning for undergraduates in health professions: A systematic review of the impact on the knowledge, skills, attitudes and satisfaction. Journal of Global Health, 4(1).
14. Woodham, L.A., et al. (2015). Medical Student and Tutor Perceptions of Video Versus Text in an Interactive Online Virtual Patient for Problem-Based Learning: A Pilot Study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 17(6):e151.
15. Round, J., Conradi, E., & Poulton, T. (2009). Improving assessment with virtual patients. Medical Teacher, 31, pp.759-763.
16. Kopp, V., Stark, R., & Fischer, M. (2008) Fostering diagnostic knowledge through computer-supported, case-based worked examples: effects of erroneous examples and feedback. Medical Education, 42 pp.823-829.
17. Edelbring, S., et al. (2011). Experiencing virtual patients in clinical learning: a phenomenological study. Adv in Health Sci Educ, 16, pp.331–345.
18. Goh, P.S. (2016). eLearning or technology enhanced learning in medical education – Hope, not hype. Medical Teacher, 38(9), pp.957-958.
19. Bowen, J. (2006). Educational Strategies to Promote Clinical Diagnostic Reasoning. N Engl J Med, 355 pp.2217-25.
20. Zary, N. et al. (2006). Development, implementation and pilot evaluation of a Web-based Virtual Patient Case Simulation environment – Web-SP. BMC Medical Education, 6(10).
21. Ellaway, R.H., Poulton, T., & Jivram, T. (2015). Decision PBL: A 4-
year retrospective case study of the use of virtual patients in problem-based learning, Medical
Teacher, 37(10) pp.926-934.
22. Hirsh, D.A., et al. (2007). “Continuity” as an Organizing Principle for Clinical Education Reform. n engl j med 356(8), pp.858-66.
23. Reid, H.J., Thomson, C., & McGlade, K.J.(2016). Content and discontent: a qualitative exploration of obstacles to elearning engagement in medical students. BMC Medical Education 16(188).
24. Cook, D.A., Erwin, P.J., & Triola, M.M. (2010). Computerized Virtual Patients in Health Professions Education: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Academic Med, 85, pp.1589–1602
25. Mayer, R.E., Heiser, J., & Lonn, S. (2001). Cognitive Constraints on Multimedia Learning: When Presenting More Material Results in Less Understanding. Journal of Educational Psychology,
93(1), pp.187-198.
26. Poulton, T., et al. (2014). Exploring the Efficacy of Replacing Linear Paper-Based Patient
Cases in Problem-Based Learning With Dynamic Web-Based Virtual Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 16(11):e240.
27. Jk-digital. “The Patient.” 24 February 2010. Online image. Flickr. 06 April 2017. https://www.flickr.com/photos/41849532@N04/4384566229/
Rights
© The Author(s)
Is Part Of
VCU Medical Education Symposium
First Author Information
Benjamin Collins, B.S., Student, VCU School of Medicine