Longitudinal Telesimulation Program and Rural Clinicians' Neonatal Resuscitation Performance.

Area of Science:

• Medical Simulation
• Neonatal Resuscitation
• Healthcare Education

Background:

• Telesimulation (TS) overcomes geographical barriers for simulation training in rural settings.
• The Maine Ongoing Outreach Simulation Education (MOOSE) program implemented longitudinal TS across five hospitals.
• The study aimed to enhance Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) adherence and analyze training impacts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a longitudinal telesimulation program on Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) adherence.
• To assess the influence of team composition and training frequency on resuscitation performance.
• To determine the feasibility of in situ telesimulation for improving neonatal emergency readiness.

Main Methods:

• Monthly telesimulation (TS) sessions were conducted with teams from five hospitals.
• Adherence to NRP guidelines was assessed using TS recordings.
• Linear regression models analyzed the relationship between NRP adherence, number of TS sessions, and team composition.

Main Results:

• A total of 121 clinicians participated across 6 to 18 TS sessions per hospital.
• NRP adherence scores increased by an average of 1.3 percentage points per training session.
• Improved performance in cardiac compressions and positive pressure ventilation was observed, linked to training frequency and physician participation.

Conclusions:

• Longitudinal in situ telesimulation demonstrated improved team adherence to NRP guidelines across multiple hospitals.
• Increased training frequency for individual team members correlated with enhanced overall team performance.
• In situ TS is a viable model for improving interprofessional neonatal resuscitation and emergency preparedness.