204 - Enhancing Pediatric Simulation In A Low Resource Setting In Rwanda: An Approach Using Virtual Reality

Publication Number: 204.4803

Patricia L. Camino, Maimonides Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn, BROOKLYN, NY, United States; Michele J. Fagan, Maimonides Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY, United States; Amish Aghera, Maimonides Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY, United States; Natalie McCall, University of Globla Health Equity, Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda; Eric Roseman, Maimonides Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY, United States

Background: Training physicians worldwide in regions with limited resources presents an ongoing challenge. Medical simulation offers a potential pathway forward - though lack of infrastructure, equipment and trained instructors has limited its broad implementation. Virtual Reality (VR) is a new form of simulation-based learning that immerses the learner with the use of headsets that isolates them from their surrounding environment. The technology continues to become more user friendly and less costly, lending itself well to use globally.

Objective: This study seeks to assess the likeability and useability of VR as a tool for teaching simulation in a low resource setting in Rwanda, specifically in regards to the Pediatric Assessment Triangle (PAT).

Design/Methods: This was an observational study involving medical students from the University of Global Health Equity on their senior pediatric clerkship rotation at Rwanda Military Hospital, a referral hospital in Kigali. Students were tasked with completing a self contained VR module on the application of PAT to triage critically ill children. The software module was developed by Health Scholars and is run on 2nd gen Meta Quest headsets. Upon completion of the module, students rated their overall experience using a previously validated usability index, the Training Evaluation Inventory (TEI). Results were reported as descriptive statistics across the various domains of TEI. We also collected demographic information and compared pre and post “comfort levels” with respect to triaging critically ill children using a Likert scale and then a t-test comparison of means.

Results: 15 medical students participated over a course of four weeks, with a 100% response rate. The TEI suggests a high level of usability for VR with Likert averages approaching or surpassing 4 across the nine outcome domains, with the domains of Subjective Fun, Perceived Usefulness, and Attitude Towards Training scoring highest (means of 4.5). The use of VR to teach the PAT also resulted in a statistically significant improvement in comfort level with identifying a sick pediatric patient, with a mean of 3.8 > 3.133 (p=0.016).

Conclusion(s): Our findings suggest that VR can be a valuable tool for medical education in low resource settings, particularly for teaching clinical skills like applying the PAT. Further research is needed to explore the scalability and long-term impact of VR in these contexts.