Clinical trial NCT06034184: Enhancing Mass Casualty Triage Through Virtual Reality Simulation
Official title: To Evaluate Whether Virtual Reality Compared to Standard Education Improves Nursing Students' Ability to Triage in a Simulated Mass Casualty Incident- a RCT
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Learning
Mass Casualty Incident
Triage
Training
Keywords: Virtual Reality
Mass casualty incidents
Triage
Learning
Nursing Students
Lead sponsor: Sophiahemmet University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Falck Ambulance A/S
name: CrashCourse AB
First posted: 2023-09-13
Enrollment: 100
Sex: ALL
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: This interventional study aims to investigate whether Virtual Reality (VR) compared to traditional education and training, can enhance the correct triage abilities of nursing students in simulated mass casualty incidents (MCI). The primary research question seeks to answer if VR compared to Standard education supports students' ability to triage correctly in a simulated MCI situation. Additionally, this study aims to address the following secondary questions: Does VR compared to standard education have an effect on the time to triage in a simulated MCI situation? And, does VR compared to Standard education have an effect on theoretical knowledge retention concerning triage in MCI situations? In the interventional group, participants will utilize VR for MCI training and learning, while the control group will undergo standard education, including lectures and paper exercises. The researchers will compare the two groups of nursing students to assess whether VR yields better outcomes in MCI triage education.

Detailed description: A randomized controlled trial (RCT) involving nursing students from a university in Stockholm, Sweden. The students are randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to either VR (intervention) or standard training in triaging during a mass casualty Incident. Both groups of participants will receive the same lecture on disaster events and triage using the same method before undergoing triage training either with VR support or traditional paper-based training. To achieve a power of 0.80 and a p-value of 0.05, a total of 60 participants are required (control n=30, intervention n=30). However, all students (approximately 100) will be invited to participate in the study to avoid excluding those who wish to take part in the study. The primary outcome measure is the students' ability to triage correctly. Secondary outcome measures include knowledge and knowledge retention, as well as the time taken to triage correctly. Knowledge tests will be conducted approximately one week after training and again 3-6 months after completing the training. The knowledge test consists of a questionnaire with 20 multiple-choice questions used in previous studies.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

Nursing students registered for a course in disaster medicine/emergency care that is conducted during their fifth semester (out of 6) in the nursing program.

Exclusion Criteria:

Does not meet inclusion criteria

Primary outcomes:
measure: Number of participants performing correct triage
timeFrame: From enrollment, theoretical education and performing training on mass casualty incidents with or without Virtual Reality
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Time range on performing correct triage on 10 injured
timeFrame: From enrollment, theoretical education and performing training on mass casualty incidents with or without Virtual Reality
Other outcomes:
measure: Number of participants with correct answers in theoretical tests
timeFrame: From enrollment, the training on mass casualty incidents with or without Virtual Reality and measuring nursing students theoretical knowledge retention on triage 1 week- 3-6 months after training.
Locations:
city: Stockholm
country: Sweden
facility: Sophiahemmet University, Lindstedtvägen 8
Study officials:
affiliation: Sophiahemmet University
name: Veronica Lindström, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: