Virtual Reality: a Teaching-learning Strategy for Cognitive Mastery in Airway Trauma Management (AW&VR)

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Education, Medical; Students, Medical; Trauma Centers; Airway Management; Manikins; Virtual Reality

Treatments: Other: VR-based simulation; Other: Mannequin-based simulation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04451590

108-2019

Details and patient eligibility

About

Airway injury in patients is a high risk and complex medical crisis. Unfortunately, training for airway management in injured patients is challenging. The most effective way of practicing airway management is using mannequins. However, mannequin training is expensive and only occasionally available to medical trainees.

The purpose of this study is to determine if Virtual Reality (VR) can be used to educate medical students on airway injury management. VR training will involve managing the care of a patient with an airway injury in an immersive, interactive VR hospital trauma bay. The investigators will compare the knowledge gained from VR training vs. mannequin training. The investigators will also investigate whether VR training teaches students faster than mannequin training. In addition, the investigators will identify factors which might affect learning from VR.

Medical students who choose to participate will be randomized (i.e. participant will have a 50% chance to be placed in either group) to be trained with VR or a mannequin. Participants then will be trained on airway injury management using their assigned training approach. One week later, all participants will be assessed on their airway injury management skills using a mannequin. Before and after their sessions, participants will also be asked to complete a questionnaire on their clinical decision-making. Participants who received VR training will also complete a questionnaire about their experience with the VR training.

This study will help develop a new approach to airway management training which is cheaper and more easily available to medical trainees than mannequin training. This educational tool could lead to better treatment of airway trauma in future patients.

Enrollment: 40 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Age ≥18 at time of consent
• Medical student at U of T in 1st, 2nd or 3rd year
• Able to attend two sessions a week apart

Exclusion criteria

• Lack of participant consent or capacity to give consent
• History of significant motion sickness (during exposure to physical, visual and virtual motion, cybersickness verbally declared by patient)
• Visual/hearing impairments that affect abilities to listen/watch videos/VR video

Trial design

Primary purpose: Other

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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40 participants in 2 patient groups

VR-based Simulation (Intervention)

Experimental group

Description:

Students will receive training on traumatic airway management using VR-based simulation.

Treatment:

Other: VR-based simulation

Mannequin-based Simulation (Control)

Other group

Description:

Students will receive training on traumatic airway management using mannequin-based simulation.

Treatment:

Other: Mannequin-based simulation