Andrew Coggins1, Dale Marchant2, Jane Bartels2, Brett Cliff3, Sandra Warburton4, Margaret Murphy3, Tatum Mitra5, Christopher J Ryan6. 1. Emergency Department, Westmead Hospital, Australia; and Simulated Learning Environment for Clinical Training (SiLECT), Australia. 2. Department of Psychiatry, Westmead Hospital, Australia. 3. Emergency Department, Westmead Hospital, Australia. 4. Simulated Learning Environment for Clinical Training (SiLECT), Australia. 5. Emergency Department, Westmead Hospital, Australia; and Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia. 6. Department of Psychiatry, Westmead Hospital, Australia; and Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: We explored the feasibility of developing, running and evaluating a simulation-based medical education (SBME) workshop to improve the knowledge, skills and attitudes of emergency department (ED) doctors when called on to assess patients in psychiatric crisis. METHOD: We designed a four-hour workshop incorporating SBME and a blend of pre-reading, short didactic elements and multiple-choice questions (MCQs). Emergency department nurses (operating as SBME faculty) used prepared scripts to portray patients presenting in psychiatric crisis. They were interviewed in front of, and by, ED doctors. We collected structured course evaluations, Debriefing Assessment for Simulation in Healthcare (DASH) scores, and pre- and post-course MCQs. RESULTS: The pilot workshop was delivered to 12 ED registrars using only existing resources of the Psychiatry and Emergency Departments. Participants highly valued both 'level of appropriateness' (Likert rating μ = 4.8/5.0) and 'overall usefulness' (μ = 4.7/5.0) of the programme. They reported an improved understanding of the mental state and of relevant legal issues and rated the debriefings highly (participant DASH rating: n = 193; score μ = 6.3/7.0). Median MCQ scores improved non-significantly pre- and post-course (7.5/12 vs 10/12, p = 0.261). CONCLUSION: An SBME workshop with these aims could be delivered and evaluated using the existing resources of the Psychiatry and Emergency Departments.
OBJECTIVE: We explored the feasibility of developing, running and evaluating a simulation-based medical education (SBME) workshop to improve the knowledge, skills and attitudes of emergency department (ED) doctors when called on to assess patients in psychiatric crisis. METHOD: We designed a four-hour workshop incorporating SBME and a blend of pre-reading, short didactic elements and multiple-choice questions (MCQs). Emergency department nurses (operating as SBME faculty) used prepared scripts to portray patients presenting in psychiatric crisis. They were interviewed in front of, and by, ED doctors. We collected structured course evaluations, Debriefing Assessment for Simulation in Healthcare (DASH) scores, and pre- and post-course MCQs. RESULTS: The pilot workshop was delivered to 12 ED registrars using only existing resources of the Psychiatry and Emergency Departments. Participants highly valued both 'level of appropriateness' (Likert rating μ = 4.8/5.0) and 'overall usefulness' (μ = 4.7/5.0) of the programme. They reported an improved understanding of the mental state and of relevant legal issues and rated the debriefings highly (participant DASH rating: n = 193; score μ = 6.3/7.0). Median MCQ scores improved non-significantly pre- and post-course (7.5/12 vs 10/12, p = 0.261). CONCLUSION: An SBME workshop with these aims could be delivered and evaluated using the existing resources of the Psychiatry and Emergency Departments.
Entities:
Keywords:
emergency medicine; medical education; patient simulation; psychiatry; ‘commitment of the mentally ill’