TEAMs go VR-validating the TEAM in a virtual reality (VR) medical team training

Area of Science:

• Medical Education Technology
• Healthcare Simulation
• Teamwork Assessment

Background:

• Inadequate collaboration in healthcare contributes to medical errors, underscoring the need for effective interdisciplinary teamwork training.
• Virtual reality (VR) simulation offers a cost-effective method for immersive training experiences.
• Evaluating assessment tools within VR training is crucial for refining educational methodologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the Team Emergency Assessment Measure (TEAM) for assessing healthcare student teams in VR environments.
• To determine the reliability and validity of the TEAM tool in a VR simulation context.
• To enhance interprofessional team training methodologies through validated assessment in virtual reality.

Main Methods:

• Forty-two medical and nursing students engaged in a VR-based neurological emergency scenario.
• The modified TEAM tool was utilized by two trained coders to assess student team performance.
• Reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients, Cronbach's alpha) and concurrent validity were statistically analyzed.

Main Results:

• High inter-rater agreement was observed for TEAM's leadership, teamwork, and task management domains (ICC: 0.75–0.90).
• The TEAM tool demonstrated strong internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.89) and acceptable domain consistency.
• Significant correlations between TEAM scores and global performance ratings confirmed strong concurrent validity.

Conclusions:

• The TEAM tool is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing team dynamics in VR-based healthcare training.
• VR simulation is a valuable tool for enhancing medical education, particularly for remote or distanced learning.
• This study validates a dependable method for team performance assessment, advancing VR-based medical training and interdisciplinary education.