Development of a Rubric to Evaluate Implementation Quality of Simulation-Based Courses: A Consensus Study.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Implementation Science

Background:

• Simulation-based education effectively develops medical competencies but is underused due to poor implementation.
• Best practices for implementing simulation courses, grounded in implementation science, are not widely applied.
• Evaluating implementation quality is crucial for optimizing simulation-based medical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a reliable rubric, the Implementation Quality Rubric for Simulation (IQR-SIM).
• To create a tool for evaluating the implementation quality of simulation-based courses.
• To support the effective implementation of simulation-based medical education.

Main Methods:

• A 3-round modified Delphi process involving international experts in simulation and implementation.
• Development of candidate items based on the Adapted Implementation Model for Simulation.
• Iterative refinement of items and anchors, with inclusion criteria based on expert consensus (≥70% importance rating).

Main Results:

• Thirty-three international experts participated in the Delphi process.
• The initial 32-item rubric was refined to an 18-item tool, the IQR-SIM.
• The IQR-SIM features a 3-point rating scale with options for 'Don't know/can't assess' and 'Not applicable', plus a comments section.

Conclusions:

• The IQR-SIM is an operational tool for evaluating simulation-based course implementation quality.
• It aids in identifying implementation gaps and monitoring the process.
• The tool promotes the achievement of desired implementation and learning outcomes in medical education.