Understanding the Impact of Acute Stressor During Simulation on Medical Students' Short and Long-Term Clinical Skills Retention
Published: 2016
Language: eng
Description: Background:

Acute stressors may be beneficial when embedded in simulation scenario to promote better skills retention. We aimed to establish the impact of acute stressors to medical students’ short-and long-term retention of intravenous catheterization skills.

Methods:

Forty-five participants took part in the intravenous catheterization simulation using standardized patients in treatment (Stress) and control (Non-Stress) groups. Participants were asked to complete State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and assessed on their skills performance before, shortly after and twenty days after the simulation session. We continuously recorded participants’ heart rate during the simulation.

Results:

No significant difference and interaction were found between pre-simulation, short-term, and long-term skills performance scores for both groups F(2, 84) = 1.231, p = 0.297. Analysis of average and maximum heart rate as well as anxiety scores was not statistically different between groups.

Conclusion:

Future study is needed to gain insight into sufficient amount of stressors needed to impact medical students’ skills retention.
Notes: Keywords: simulation; skills; retention; cognitive; stress.

Author's ORCID: 0000-0002-3100-9660.

Master of Medical Sciences Harvard University 2016.

Thesis (Master of Medical Sciences)--Master of Medical Sciences in Medical Education, Harvard Medical School, May 2016.

Author embargo expires May 1, 2018