Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: Pediatric Team-Based Learning Module

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is an autoimmune disease that impacts roughly 200,000 youths in the United States. Many patients have limited access to specialist care. Therefore, general pediatricians are expected to be skilled in the management of diabetes. Recent studies suggest that an educational gap exists for general practitioners regarding diabetes care. Team-based learning (TBL), an active, learner-centered method of teaching, has been shown to be an effective tool in adult learning and teaching. Here, we outline a TBL activity focused on the education of pediatric residents in the comprehensive management of T1DM.

Learners prepare in advance by reading through a review article on T1DM. They are formed into groups and work through the readiness assurance process first, followed by application exercises. The application exercises focus on choosing and applying an insulin regimen to a patient with a new diagnosis of T1DM, including modification of this regimen based on blood sugar trends, management of diabetes ketoacidosis, and recognition and management of hypoglycemia.

Learners showed improvement in their readiness assurance testing, from 81.4% individually to 91% as a group. Eighty percent of learners agreed or strongly agreed this was an effective method for improving diabetes skills and knowledge, and the learning process engaged them.

TBL may be a valuable educational strategy to enhance knowledge of T1DM care for general pediatricians. Future studies focusing on longitudinal educational outcomes would be beneficial.