Effectiveness of Simulation-based Clinical Skills Training for Medical Students in Respiratory Medicine: A Pilot Study

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of high-fidelity simulation-based medical education (HF-SBME) in teaching and learning respiratory clinical examination in medical students. Study Design: Quasi-experimental pilot study. Place and Duration of Study: The Aga Khan University, Karachi, from November 2018 to January 2020. Methodology: This study was conducted amongst third year medical students at the University. Students were assigned to intervention (IG) or control groups (CG). The IG underwent training for the respiratory clinical examination on a high-fidelity simulator mannequin, while the CG received the conventional practice session on standardised patients. Students were assessed on their respiratory clinical examination skills in five domains, and each domain was scored between 1-3 points (poor=1, fair=2, good=3) for a maximum composite score of 15. Feedback on use of SBME was also obtained from students. Results: There were no statistically significant differences in demographics for the CG (n=41) and IG (n=40). Composite score for control and intervention groups was not significantly different (CG: 12.9 +/- 1.89 vs. IG: 12.0 +/- 2.35; p=0.067). However, a greater percentage of CG students were rated good in all five domains, with the difference being statistically significant for ability to correlate findings with clinical history (CG: 87.8% vs. IG: 67.5%; p=0.028). Conclusion: Although medical students perceived HF-SBME as a beneficial teaching modality, it did not translate into improved performance. More research is required to determine the utility of HF-SBME in a developing country, like Pakistan.