Teaching infectiology through electronic adaptative flashcards on mobile phones to medical residents: randomized...

Flashcards applications are getting more and more popular among medical students. They rely on principles that have been largely proven in different studies. However, there is very limited data on their benefits in real life conditions. While infectiology is a difficult topic for medical interns, the proper use of antibiotics represents a major public health issue.

Evaluating the benefits of Flashcards (FC) for learning infectiology.

This was a prospective study conducted among residents from intensive care - anesthesiology and emergency specialties in the north-west quarter of FranceAll residents included received infectiology courses in the form of a slide show by email. They were then randomized in a 1:1 fashion into two closed online user groups unblinded. The first group received online slide shows only. The second group was invited to join a FC application for mobile phones (Brainscape®). The progression of each group was measured through an online test at 3 and 6 months.

One hundred eighty-eight students were included in this study, 95 in the FC group and 93 in the control group. Within the FC group: 67% (n = 64 students) logged on to the application, mean of FC used: 50, median of FC used: 40. There was a significant attrition bias: of the 188 residents included, only 45% (n = 85) responded to the final test. There was no significant difference between the two groups in test results at 6 months (14.50 ± 4.18 / 28 [n = 44] vs 13.05 ± 5.12 / 28, [n = 41]; p = 0.19, in the FC and control groups respectively; IC₉₅ = [-3.46; 0.56]).

Flashcards enhance elements essential to learning such as regularity and personal involvement. The lack of significance of this study may be attributable to a lack of use of the tool by the students as it was purely voluntary and there was no validating final exam, which did not allow its beneficial effects on learning to be maximized.