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Utilization of high-fidelity simulation to address challenges with the basic science immunology education of
Marie Cavuoto Petrizzo1, Maria-Louise Barilla-LaBarca2, Youn Seon Lim2
1Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, 500 Hofstra Blvd., Hempstead, NY, USA. Marie.C.Petrizzo@hofstra.edu.
Insights
Simulation in medical education enhances immunology learning. A Primary Immunodeficiency Disease (PIDD) simulation improved students' clinical reasoning and knowledge integration, demonstrating its value in bridging basic science and clinical practice.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Immunology
- Clinical Simulation
Background:
- Connecting complex immunology concepts to clinical manifestations is challenging for preclinical medical students.
- Medical education reform emphasizes integrating basic science with clinical medicine in early years.
- Simulation is a valuable tool for clinical learning but underutilized in basic science curricula.
Purpose of the Study:
- To pilot simulation as a novel approach to enhance fundamental immunology knowledge and clinical integration in preclinical medical students.
- To assess the utility of a Primary Immunodeficiency Disease (PIDD) simulation in reinforcing clinical reasoning and understanding of immunodeficiency.
Main Methods:
- A PIDD simulation was implemented in a second-year medical school immunology course.
- Small groups of students evaluated, diagnosed, and managed a simulated infant with immunodeficiency.
- Joint faculty debriefings utilized Socratic discussion to link basic science to the clinical case.
Main Results:
- Over 90% of students endorsed simulation objectives, indicating high satisfaction.
- A statistically significant improvement in Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) scores was observed post-simulation.
- Students demonstrated enhanced recognition of PIDD and improved clinical reasoning.
Conclusions:
- Simulation effectively enhances relevance and consolidation of complex basic science concepts for preclinical learners.
- This innovative curricular intervention bridges the gap between theoretical immunology and clinical practice.
- Expansion of simulation in basic science courses like immunology is recommended.
Background:
Immune function and dysfunction are highly complex basic science concepts introduced in the preclinical medical school curriculum. A challenge for early learners is connecting the intricate details and concepts in immunology with clinical manifestations. This impedes relevance and applicability. The impetus in medical education reform is promoting consolidation of basic science and clinical medicine during the first two years of medical school. Simulation is an innovation now widely employed in medical schools to enhance clinical learning. Its use in basic science curriculums is largely deficient. The authors piloted simulation as a novel curricular approach to enhance fundamental immunology knowledge and clinical integration.
Methods:
The authors introduced a Primary Immunodeficiency Disease (PIDD) simulation during a basic science immunology course for second-year medical students at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. The simulation tasked small groups of students with evaluating, diagnosing and managing an infant with previously undiagnosed immunodeficiency. Joint facilitation by clinical and science faculty during terminal debriefings engaged students in Socratic discussion. Debriefing aimed to immerse basic science content in the context of the clinical case. Students completed a post-simulation Likert survey, assessing utility in reinforcing clinical reasoning, integration of basic science and clinical immunology, enhanced knowledge and understanding of immunodeficiency, and enhanced learning. A summative Immunodeficiency Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) question was created by faculty to assess students' recognition of a PIDD and clinical reasoning.
Results:
The simulation was well received by students with > 90% endorsing each of the objectives on the post-simulation survey. The authors also determined a statistically significant score variance on the summative OSCE question. Higher scores were achieved by the cohort of students completing the OSCE post-simulation versus the cohort completing the OSCE pre-simulation.
Conclusions:
The innovative use of simulation in a highly complex basic science immunology course provides relevance and consolidation for preclinical learners. Additional data will be collected to continuously assess application of concepts and proficiency stemming from this novel curricular intervention. The authors advocate the initiation and/or expansion of simulation in non-clinical basic science courses such as immunology to bridge the gap between theory and practice.
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