a multicentre cohort study of nursing and medical students

Funding Information: The authors would like to thank Daniela Abreu, MSc who established contact with the participating institutions and was responsible for implementation of the study protocol. They also wish to thank the following faculty who assisted with study implementation: University of Rzeszow: Paweł Więch, PhD, DSc, Grzegorz Kucaba, PhD, EMT-P; Jacek Szczygielski, PhD, MD; Izabela Sałacińska, PhD, CRNA; Dariusz Bazaliński, PhD, DSc; Marzena Domino, MA; Cadi Ayyad University: Abdelhamid Hachimi, MD; Houssam Rebahi, MD; Mohamed Bouskraoui, MD; University of South-Eastern Norway: Guro-Marie Eiken, MScN, RN, NP; Porto Nursing School: Paulo Machado, RN, PhD; UNITEC: Doany Gutierrez, MD; Juan Carlos Triminio MD; Karina Varela MD; Sonia Escoto MD, MSc; Lía Mineros MD, MSc; Ely Ramírez MD; Guimel Peralta MD; Odessa Henríquez MD, PhD; David Tvildiani Medical University: Sergo Tabagari, MD, PhD; Tamar Talakvadze, MD, PhD; Paata Tsagareishvili, MD; Rusudan Agladze, MD, PhD; Ketevan Kapanadze, MD; Nino Gakhokidze, MD; Red Cross Higher School of Health: Ana Sofia Jesus, Paediatric RN; NOVA Medical School: Maria Teresa Neto, MD, PhD; Catarina Limbert, MD, PhD; Rui Domingues, MD; Filipa Marujo, MD; Guilherme Lourenço, MD; Beatriz Ferreira, Medical Student; and Guangxi Medical College: Lu Zhhenzhi, NS. Funding Information: André Mestre was supported by Centro 2020, PT2020 and European Union research grant nº 41388 to Take the Wind Ltd, developers of the Body Interact™ Virtual Patient Simulator. No other investigators or participants received compensation for their role in the study. Funding Information: A.Mestre was supported by Centro 2020, PT2020 and European Union research grant nº 41388 to Take the Wind Ltd, developers of the Body InteractTM Virtual Patient Simulator. No other investigators or participants received compensation for their role in the study. The authors had access to all study data and sole responsibility for data analysis and the writing of the manuscript. All other authors have no competing interest to declare . Publisher Copyright: © 2022, The Author(s).Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated rapid changes in medical education to protect students and patients from the risk of infection. Virtual Patient Simulators (VPS) provide a simulated clinical environment in which students can interview and examine a patient, order tests and exams, prioritize interventions, and observe response to therapy, all with minimal risk to themselves and their patients. Like high-fidelity simulators (HFS), VPS are a tool to improve curricular integration. Unlike HFS, VPS require limited infrastructure investment and can be used in low-resource settings. Few studies have examined the impact of VPS training on clinical education. This international, multicenter cohort study was designed to assess the impact of small-group VPS training on individual learning process and curricular integration from the perspective of nursing and medical students. Methods: We conducted a multi-centre, international cohort study of nursing and medical students. Baseline perceptions of individual learning process and curricular integration were assessed using a 27-item pre-session questionnaire. Students subsequently participated in small-group VPS training sessions lead by a clinical tutor and then completed a 32-item post-session questionnaire, including 25 paired items. Pre- and post-session responses were compared to determine the impact of the small-group VPS experience. Results: Participants included 617 nursing and medical students from 11 institutions in 8 countries. At baseline, nursing students reported greater curricular integration and more clinical and simulation experience than did medical students. After exposure to small-group VPS training, participants reported significant improvements in 5/6 items relating to individual learning process and 7/7 items relating to curricular integration. The impact of the VPS experience was similar amongst nursing and medical students. Conclusions: In this multi-centre study, perceptions of individual learning process and curricular integration improved after exposure to small-group VPS training. Nursing and medical students showed similar impact. Small-group VPS training is an accessible, low-risk educational strategy that can improve student perceptions of individual learning process and curricular integration.publishersversionpublishe