High-fidelity simulation increases obstetric self-assurance and skills in undergraduate medical students

Objective: Teaching intrapartum care is one of the most challenging tasks in undergraduate medical education. High-fidelity obstetric simulators might support students' learning experience. The specific educational impact of these simulators compared with traditional methods of model-based obstetric teaching has not yet been determined. Study design: We randomly assigned 46 undergraduate medical students to be taught using either a high-fidelity simulator or a scale wood-and-leather phantom. Their self-assessments were evaluated using a validated questionnaire. We assessed obstetric skills and asked students to solve obstetric paper cases. Main outcome measures: Assessment of fidelity-specific teaching impact on procedural knowledge, motivation, and interest in obstetrics as well as obstetric skills using high- and low-fidelity training models. Results: High-fidelity simulation specifically improved students' feeling that they understood both the physiology of parturition and the obstetric procedures. Students in the simulation group also felt better prepared for obstetric house jobs and performed better in obstetric skills evaluations. However, the two groups made equivalent obstetric decisions. Conclusion: This study provides first data on the impact of high-fidelity simulation in an undergraduate setting

“MacGyver-Meets-Dr. Ruth”: Science Journalism and the Material Positioning of Dr. Carla Pugh

This article examines the rhetorical consequences of foregrounding female scientists\u27 materials through an analysis of seven news articles on Dr. Carla Pugh, a surgeon who designs medical patient simulators. Journalists foreground Pugh\u27s materials by positioning her as both “MacGyver,” creatively assembling simulators from everyday objects, and “Dr. Ruth,” willingly discussing intimate parts. These positions avoid focusing on Pugh\u27s personal life or body but still ultimately gender her and her work. The MacGyver position associates Pugh with gendered activities, objects, and spaces while undermining her affiliation with the technical aspects of design. Meanwhile, the Dr. Ruth position implies Pugh\u27s knowledge comes from inherent bodily expertise, making certain scientific fields appear more natural for women

Design, validation and dissemination of an undergraduate assessment tool using SimMan® in simulated medical emergencies

Background: Increasingly, medical students are being taught acute medicine using whole-body simulator manikins. Aim: We aimed to design, validate and make widely available two simple assessment tools to be used with Laerdal SimMan (R) for final year students. Methods: We designed two scenarios with criterion-based checklists focused on assessment and management of two medical emergencies. Members of faculty critiqued the assessments for face validity and checklists revised. We assessed three groups of different experience levels: Foundation Year 2 doctors, third and final year medical students. Differences between groups were analysed, and internal consistency and interrater reliability calculated. A generalisability analysis was conducted using scenario and rater as facets in design. Results: A maximum of two items were removed from either checklist following the initial survey. Significantly different scores for three groups of experience for both scenarios were reported (p0.90). Internal consistency was poor (alpha<50.5). Generalizability study results suggest that four cases would provide reliable discrimination between final year students. Conclusions: These assessments proved easy to administer and we have gone some way to demonstrating construct validity and reliability. We have made the material available on a simulator website to enable others to reproduce these assessments

Methods and Tools for Objective Assessment of Psychomotor Skills in Laparoscopic Surgery

Training and assessment paradigms for laparoscopic surgical skills are evolving from traditional mentor–trainee tutorship towards structured, more objective and safer programs. Accreditation of surgeons requires reaching a consensus on metrics and tasks used to assess surgeons’ psychomotor skills. Ongoing development of tracking systems and software solutions has allowed for the expansion of novel training and assessment means in laparoscopy. The current challenge is to adapt and include these systems within training programs, and to exploit their possibilities for evaluation purposes. This paper describes the state of the art in research on measuring and assessing psychomotor laparoscopic skills. It gives an overview on tracking systems as well as on metrics and advanced statistical and machine learning techniques employed for evaluation purposes. The later ones have a potential to be used as an aid in deciding on the surgical competence level, which is an important aspect when accreditation of the surgeons in particular, and patient safety in general, are considered. The prospective of these methods and tools make them complementary means for surgical assessment of motor skills, especially in the early stages of training. Successful examples such as the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery should help drive a paradigm change to structured curricula based on objective parameters. These may improve the accreditation of new surgeons, as well as optimize their already overloaded training schedules

Healthcare Robotics

Robots have the potential to be a game changer in healthcare: improving health and well-being, filling care gaps, supporting care givers, and aiding health care workers. However, before robots are able to be widely deployed, it is crucial that both the research and industrial communities work together to establish a strong evidence-base for healthcare robotics, and surmount likely adoption barriers. This article presents a broad contextualization of robots in healthcare by identifying key stakeholders, care settings, and tasks; reviewing recent advances in healthcare robotics; and outlining major challenges and opportunities to their adoption.Comment: 8 pages, Communications of the ACM, 201

The Role of Information Technology in the Training of Healthcare Professionals

The purpose of the study is to analyse the current level of use of information technology in medical universities, as well as to investigate experience from other countries and consequently to design promising methods for enhancing the role of such technologies in training specialists in the field of medicine. After the study conducted, the following results were obtained, namely theoretical and practical statements on the issue. Thus, in the theoretical component, the concept of information technologies has been revealed and their impact on the efficiency of the learning process, particularly in medical universities, has been determined. In terms of the practical framework, it analyses international experience and identifies the main advantages arising from the use of modern programmes in the course of medical education. When it comes to the practical value of the study, it lies in the fact that it can be used not only by teachers, when designing curricula, but also by students during their studies, to facilitate and even accelerate them to a certain extent

Include 2011 : The role of inclusive design in making social innovation happen.

Include is the biennial conference held at the RCA and hosted by the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design. The event is directed by Jo-Anne Bichard and attracts an international delegation

Aerospace medicine and biology. A continuing bibliography with indexes, supplement 186

This bibliography lists 159 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System in October 1978