531 - Interns Prefer Virtual Reality (VR) to Lecture when Learning about Pediatric Assessment

This was a randomized controlled study involving Pediatric (Peds) and Emergency Medicine (EM) interns in orientation at an urban academic center where both programs are ACGME accredited. We enrolled all available Peds and EM interns and randomly assigned them to either VR or lecture designed to teach the components of PAT. VR consisted of a module developed by a software vendor (Health Scholars) and lecture was a prerecorded video created and delivered by a Ped Intensivist. Upon completion, interns completed the Training Evaluation Inventory (TEI) anonymously, which is an existing usability index survey with validity evidence. Responses were compared with a t-test.

Results:

36 interns were enrolled (18 Peds, 18 EM) with a 100% survey response rate. The TEI suggests a high level of usability for VR with Likert averages approaching or surpassing 4 across all five outcome domains.  VR yielded significantly greater usability scores with respect to Enjoyment (3.89 > 2.83; p=.006) and Attitude Toward Training (4.11 > 3.17 p=.0038). The remaining domains resulted in more similar scores: Knowledge Growth (3.78 > 3.17 p=.058), Perceived Difficulty (3.94 > 3.67 p=0.33), and Perceived Usefulness (4.05 > 4 p=0.83).

Conclusion(s):

EM and Peds interns preferred VR to traditional lecture for learning the essentials of pediatric assessment. This suggests that VR is a viable learning modality that might warrant expansion into other content areas.