Uncovering Research Themes in Simulation-Based Critical Care Education: A Bibliometric and Cluster Analysis

Simulation-based medical education (SBME) has become integral to critical care training, providing a safe and effective platform for clinical skill development, teamwork and patient safety. Despite increasing recognition of its educational value, the global research landscape of SBME in critical care remains insufficiently mapped.

To conduct a comprehensive bibliometric analysis and elucidate key trends, influential contributors and emerging research themes in SBME for critical care.

Literature published between 1981 and 2025 was systematically retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. Bibliometric analyses were performed using VOSviewer, CiteSpace and R (version 4.3.3).

A total of 557 eligible publications were identified, revealing a marked increase in research output, with significant peaks in 2015 and 2021. The United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and China were the leading contributors, collectively accounting for the majority of global publications and international collaborations. Simulation in Healthcare was the most prolific journal, while Critical Care Medicine had the highest citation impact. Harvard University and Johns Hopkins University emerged as the top institutions and William C. McGaghie, Eric R. Cohen and David B. Wayne were among the most influential authors. Keyword cluster analysis revealed five principal thematic areas: (1) Simulation and Outcomes in Acute Care, (2) Competence and Curriculum Development, (3) Patient Safety and Teamwork, (4) Skill Acquisition and Clinical Training and (5) Education, Confidence and Perceptions. Citation burst analysis highlighted 'simulation', 'high-fidelity simulation' and 'cardiopulmonary resuscitation' as current and emerging research foci.

SBME research in critical care medicine has experienced substantial global growth, with a clear shift toward high-fidelity, outcome-driven and technology-enhanced educational strategies. This bibliometric analysis provides a structured overview of the field's evolution, interdisciplinary scope and future directions.

Ongoing research should prioritise the evaluation of advanced simulation modalities, real-world clinical outcomes and underrepresented critical care scenarios to further enhance training efficacy, patient safety and quality of care.