Medical Education
Conditions
Keywords
Virtual Reality, Medical Education, Surgical Skills, Abscess Incision and Drainage, Objective Structured Clinical Examination, OSCE, Undergraduate Medical Students, Simulation-Based Education
Brief summary
This completed randomized educational trial evaluated whether virtual reality (VR)-assisted teaching improves medical students' performance in abscess incision and drainage compared with conventional teaching. A total of 120 second-year medical students were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either VR-assisted teaching or conventional teaching. Both groups received 120 minutes of instruction covering the same core learning objectives. The primary outcome was the immediate post-intervention objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) skills score for abscess incision and drainage. Secondary outcomes included theoretical knowledge, learning interest, and course satisfaction.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALVR-Assisted Abscess Incision and Drainage Teaching
Participants received a 120-minute teaching session consisting of a 10-minute orientation, 20-minute faculty demonstration, 30-minute virtual reality training, 40-minute physical hands-on practice using an abscess incision teaching model, and 20-minute debriefing and feedback. The VR component used immersive three-dimensional visualization, stepwise task guidance, and error prompts to teach the procedural sequence of abscess incision and drainage.
BEHAVIORALConventional Abscess Incision and Drainage Teaching
Participants received a 120-minute conventional teaching session consisting of a 10-minute orientation, 20-minute faculty demonstration, 30-minute structured instructor-guided procedural review, 40-minute physical hands-on practice using an abscess incision teaching model, and 20-minute debriefing and feedback.
Sponsors
Quanzhou Medical College
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Masking description
Participants and instructors were not blinded because the VR equipment and teaching format were visible. The OSCE examiners were not informed of group allocation. Participants were instructed not to reveal their assigned teaching method during the assessment.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 25 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Second-year medical students at Quanzhou Medical College who were enrolled in the surgical-skills curriculum. * No prior systematic dedicated training in abscess incision and drainage. * Able to complete the teaching session, immediate OSCE assessment, theoretical knowledge test, and questionnaires. * Willing to participate and provided written informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
* Prior dedicated training in abscess incision and drainage. * Refusal to participate. * Inability to complete the assigned teaching session or immediate assessment. * Inability to complete VR training or course assessment because of obvious dizziness, visual discomfort, movement disorder, or other reasons.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Immediate Post-Intervention OSCE Skills Score | Immediately after completion of the 120-minute teaching intervention | Abscess incision and drainage procedural performance was assessed using a 100-point objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) checklist. Each participant was independently assessed by two examiners who were not informed of group allocation. The final OSCE score was calculated as the mean of the two examiner ratings. Scores ranged from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better simulated procedural performance. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Theoretical Knowledge Posttest Score | Immediately after completion of the 120-minute teaching intervention | Theoretical knowledge of abscess incision and drainage was assessed using a 20-item single-best-answer multiple-choice test developed according to the course learning objectives. Each correct answer was awarded 5 points, and incorrect, multiple, or unanswered items received 0 points. Total scores ranged from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater theoretical knowledge. |
| Learning Interest Posttest Score | Immediately after completion of the 120-minute teaching intervention | Learning interest was assessed using a 10-item Likert scale. Each item was rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The total score ranged from 10 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater interest in learning procedural skills. |
| Course Satisfaction Total Score | Immediately after completion of the teaching intervention and assessment | Course satisfaction was assessed using a 10-item Likert scale. Each item was rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The total score ranged from 10 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater course satisfaction. |
Countries
China
Outcome results
None listed