Comparing telesimulation-based learning and e-learning as remote education delivery methods in pre-hospital practice

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Emergency Medical Services
• Distance Learning Technologies

Background:

• Pre-hospital practitioners in rural areas face challenges accessing continuous professional development.
• Distance learning offers a solution for delivering high-quality education to geographically dispersed learners.
• E-learning is an established modality, while telesimulation is an emerging teaching tool.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate and compare the experiences of pre-hospital practitioners with e-learning versus telesimulation.
• To assess the effectiveness of these distance learning methods for professional development.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving 26 pre-hospital responders from January to June 2021.
• Participants were randomly assigned to either an e-learning module or a telesimulation session on acute paediatric asthma.
• Post-session satisfaction questionnaires were used for quantitative and qualitative analysis.

Main Results:

• Both e-learning and telesimulation met learning objectives and were positively received.
• Telesimulation received significantly higher ratings for engagement (p=0.044) and suitability (p=0.033).
• Qualitative feedback noted telesimulation's immersive nature and e-learning's flexibility and stimulating questions.

Conclusions:

• Both telesimulation and e-learning effectively address geographical and availability challenges in medical education.
• Telesimulation facilitates multi-disciplinary teamwork among remote practitioners.
• E-learning provides flexible access to education for continuous professional development.