Simulation-based education – how to get started

Simulation-based education (SBE) has a long history in medical education. SBE is now widely used to train individuals and teams in technical as well as social and cognitive skills. Much of the simulation literature is developed in well-resourced universities and hospitals with a dedicated simulation center, staff, consumables, and other assets. Looking at simulation from a global viewpoint, simulation centers are very hard to establish since the opportunity cost of investing in simulators, mannequins, equipment, a physical space and staff to run the center, is high. There also exists other barriers, for example time and training opportunities needed to develop expertise amongst simulation educators in the institution. Understanding that fidelity is not equal to benefit and that scenarios can be conducted in actual clinical settings, such as using in-situ simulation, rather than specialist simulation facilities, can help anesthesiologists begin to train using simulation without the need for significant financial investment. We provide practical tips for getting started with SBE and argue that the most important investment is in faculty development and engagement of the team. We also discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in necessitating the simulation world to be creative and develop new ways to train, for example through remote simulation. © World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists 2022.

Application of online case-based learning in the teaching of clinical anesthesia for residents during the COVID-19 epidemic.

OBJECTIVE: COVID-19 prevention and control demand a reduction in crowd gathering, which has a significant impact on traditional teaching and offline case-based learning (CBL). In order to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on clinical teaching, we aimed to compare the effects of an online CBL with traditional teaching model on learning outcomes of anesthesia residents. METHODS: Residents rotated in the Department of Anesthesiology in Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital from January 2020 to February 2021 were included in Group W (n = 19), which implemented the W-CBL teaching model. The performance of residents was evaluated with theory test and 2 survey questionnaires (A and B) were conducted after 1 month of rotating. All 20 residents rotating in the Department of Anesthesiology at our hospital from January 2018 to December 2019 were included in Group C, which implemented the traditional teaching model. Their examination results were acquired through the teaching files and survey questionnaire (A) were administered through WeChat. RESULTS: During the 1-month rotation, a total of 10 cases were discussed in Group W. The average score for theory test was higher in Group W than that in Group C (84.57 ± 4.87 vs. 79.35 ± 3.70, P = 0.001). The satisfaction rate was also in favor of Group W regarding to clinical thinking, communication skills, learning interest and self-learning ability (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Online CBL based on WeChat platform is an effective and acceptable teaching strategy in comparison to lecture-based learning (LBL) among residents embarking on clinical anesthesia courses.

Transitioning to Virtual Meetings: Experiences From the Society for Education in Anesthesia Virtual Fall 2020 Meeting.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced organizers of traditional in-person continuing medical education conferences to transition to a virtual format. There are both advantages and disadvantages to this change in format. When planning a virtual meeting, several factors require consideration, including costs, virtual platforms, sponsorship, networking, and meeting logistics. This manuscript describes the authors' experiences of transforming the Society of Education in Anesthesia 2020 Fall Meeting into a virtual conference and explores the lessons learned and future impacts of this new medium.

Retrospective Analysis of COVID-19 Conversion Rate Among Anesthesiologists in Acute Care Centers.

Brief description of the primary research objective Among healthcare workers, anesthesiologists are regarded as frequently exposed frontline providers in the fight against COVID-19 due to their proximity to patient airways and involvement in aerosolized procedures. As such, the risk of contracting the COVID-19 virus as an occupational hazard is presumed to be higher. To date, in most published studies, all healthcare workers were grouped together, independent of specialty or profession. At the time that this survey was distributed, we did not find any peer-reviewed articles that differentiated COVID-19 infection rates among frontline, such as anesthesiologists vs. non-frontline healthcare workers. This retrospective survey's primary research objective was to report the rate of COVID-19 infection among anesthesiologists compared to the general population of healthcare workers. Methodology A survey was sent among anesthesiology attendings and residents in Northern New Jersey and Brooklyn, New York hospitals on duty during the peak pandemic from March 2020 to May 2020. Questions in the survey focused on infection rates and adherence to standards of infection precaution and personal protective equipment (PPE) utilization. Main Findings This retrospective study highlights the rate of infection among anesthesiologists as a particularly vulnerable subgroup of frontline residents and physicians, as they are called to duty when emergent airway management is required. In our study, the reported rate of contracting COVID-19 among anesthesiologists was 16.7%. This statistic is higher than the infection rates published by studies by New York State and the CDC. Conclusion The survey sent to anesthesiologists is useful to understand the impact of COVID-19 on this subgroup of frontline providers and the importance of adhering to standards of infection protocol and the role of PPE.