Improving procedural skills acquisition of students during medical device training: experiments on e-Learning vs....

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Biomedical Engineering
• Human Factors Engineering

Background:

• e-Learning offers standardized medical device training but lacks hands-on components valued by learners.
• Blended learning approaches aim to integrate e-Learning with practical, hands-on training for medical devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate if using a syringe pump during e-Learning enhances procedural skills for medical device operation.
• To compare the effectiveness of different hands-on integration methods within an e-Learning medical device training program.

Main Methods:

• Two experiments were conducted comparing an e-Learning only group with an e-Learning + hands-on group using a syringe pump.
• The hands-on group either repeated content with the pump or alternated between learning and application.
• Skills, knowledge, and confidence were assessed immediately and two weeks post-training.

Main Results:

• Simply repeating content with the syringe pump did not improve skills compared to e-Learning alone.
• An instructed learning process, alternating between e-Learning and hands-on pump use, significantly improved skills test performance.
• A structured learning process, guided by multimedia learning principles, enhanced procedural skills for medical device operation.

Conclusions:

• A structured, active learning process integrating e-Learning with hands-on medical device practice is superior to passive repetition.
• Effective blended learning for medical devices requires thoughtful design based on learning principles to improve procedural skills.
• This study highlights the importance of integrating practical application within digital learning for medical device training.