Alcohol Withdrawal and Lithium Toxicity: A Novel Psychiatric Mannequin-Based Simulation Case for Medical Students

High-fidelity mannequin-based simulation is frequently used to compliment medical student education during clinical clerkships. However, psychiatric educators have not broadly adopted this modality, focusing rather on standardized patient actors. We developed and delivered a simulation case involving a patient with alcohol withdrawal and lithium toxicity followed by a debriefing session to medical students at the end of their psychiatric clerkship.

The case involves a 40-year-old male truck driver with a history of bipolar disorder who presents to the emergency room after a truck accident. The patient is in alcohol withdrawal, which responds to benzodiazepines. A workup reveals that the patient also has lithium toxicity related to the co-ingestion of lithium and naproxen for pain. Participants learn to evaluate and treat alcohol withdrawal, consider medical comorbidities and legal consequences, and complete a brief intervention for substance use. This case requires a simulation mannequin.

To date, 150 second-, third-, and fourth-year medical students have participated in this case and 76 have been surveyed. Participants have provided a postsession rating of 4.49 on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree) on a question about enjoyment, and 3.93 on a question about confidence with evaluation and treatment of patients in alcohol withdrawal.

Psychiatric education currently underutilizes mannequin-based simulation compared to other medical disciplines. Mannequin simulation is feasible and effective in psychiatric education, especially in cases involving medical complexity, as shown in this novel case involving a patient with alcohol withdrawal and lithium toxicity.