Medical simulation for teaching trauma care in low-resource settings

Annual Congress and Medicare Expo on Trauma & Critical Care

March 07-09, 2016 Madrid, Spain

Hannah H Janeway

Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, USA

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Trauma Treat

Abstract :

Morbidity and mortality from intentional and unintentional injury accounts for a high burden of disease in low- and middle-income countries. In addition to preventative measures, interventions that increase healthcare capacity to manage injured patients can be an effective way to decrease this burden. Medical simulation has been shown to augment traditional didactic curricula and better access the clinical skills of trainees in a variety of training scenarios. Simulation lends itself particularly well to trauma training, as it emphasizes, and provides an opportunity to assess, a team-based approach. A trauma curriculum tailored to low-resource settings and utilizing low-cost simulation methods and traditional didactics was implemented in Managua and then adapted for a variety of other low-resource settings. Participants were tested for knowledge gain, which was assessed by comparing pre- and post-course multiple-choice exams and by scoring distinct pre- and post-course simulation scenarios using a critical action checklist. The Wilcox signed-rank test was used to compare the pre- and post-training difference. Overall written scores improved 26.3% with a positive mean increase of 15.4% (p<0.001) while simulation scores improved by 91.4% with a positive mean increase of 33.67% (p<0.001). These results were duplicated in Rwanda, American Samoa, and Kenya where the course was implemented for residents, physicians, and medical students, respectively. The participants showed the greatest improvement in the simulation scenarios, in which they learned and demonstrated a standardized approach to assessing and managing trauma patients. Simulation can be an effective and low cost education tool in low- and middle-income countries.