A Gamified Cardiometabolic Health Curriculum Utilizing a Student Response System for Internal Medicine Residents

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Digital Health
• Cardiology

Background:

• Cardiovascular disease management guidelines evolve, necessitating continuous education for primary care physicians.
• Teaching clinical practice guidelines to residents is crucial for knowledge retention and patient care implementation.
• Gamification offers an engaging, active learning approach, but its effectiveness in teaching guideline-based care needs further evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a gamified cardiometabolic health curriculum using a student response system (SRS) for internal medicine residents.
• To assess the benefits of gamification in teaching guideline-based care compared to traditional methods.

Main Methods:

• A gamified curriculum using KAHOOT!® (an SRS) was developed for internal medicine residents, covering T2DM, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, MAFLD, and weight management.
• The gamified format was compared to a traditional slide-based format in a randomized assignment.
• Anonymous pre- and post-surveys assessed resident confidence and test performance using Likert scales.

Main Results:

• Both gamified and traditional formats similarly increased resident confidence in managing most cardiometabolic conditions.
• No significant difference was found in post-curricular changes in board-style question scores or confidence ratings between the two formats.
• A significantly higher proportion of residents found the gamified format engaging (90.9%) compared to the traditional format (14.2%).

Conclusions:

• Gamified learning is comparable to traditional methods in enhancing resident confidence and knowledge of cardiometabolic guidelines.
• Gamification appears to increase learner engagement, though its impact on long-term retention and participation requires further study.
• Initial data suggest the efficacy of virtual gamified curricula for teaching clinical practice guidelines, despite limitations from a low response rate.