Employing Simulated Participants to Develop Communication Skills in Medical Education: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Medical Education Research
• Communication Skills Training
• Healthcare Simulation

Background:

• Simulated participants (SPs) are widely used in medical education for communication skills development.
• Existing research predominantly consists of qualitative or non-comparative studies.
• Quantitative comparative evidence on the effectiveness of SP-based teaching is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of SP-based teaching for patient-centered communication skills in medical education.
• To compare SP-based teaching with traditional methods like lectures and peer role-play.
• To synthesize comparative quantitative data on this educational approach.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review and meta-analysis following PRISMA guidelines.
• Searched multiple databases (MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ERIC) through February 2023.
• Included 21 studies (2500 participants); 10 were eligible for meta-analysis.

Main Results:

• A medium effect size (SMD = 0.74) favored SP-based teaching over traditional formats for communication skills.
• The pooled analysis included 2061 participants from 10 studies.
• High heterogeneity (I² = 95%) was observed across studies.

Conclusions:

• SP-based teaching demonstrates a medium, statistically significant positive effect on communication skills in medical education.
• High heterogeneity suggests variability in study populations, interventions, and outcome measures.
• Further research is needed to explore factors contributing to this heterogeneity.