An open randomized controlled study comparing an online text-based scenario and a serious game by Belgian and Swiss pharmacy students

Jérôme Berger, Noura Bawab, Jeremy De Mooij, Denise Sutter Widmer, Nicolas Szilas, Carine De Vriese, Olivier Bugnon
2018 Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning  
To compare online learning tools, looped, branch serious game (SG) and linear textbased scenario (TBS), among a sample of Belgian and Swiss pharmacy students. Methods: Open randomized controlled study. The lesson was based on the case of a benign cough in a healthy child. A randomized sample of 117 students: only the Swiss students had attended a previous lecture on coughs. Participation rate, pre-and post-experience Likert scales and students' clinical knowledge were measured. Results: Our
more » ... ary hypothesis was demonstrated: students favored the SG even if navigation was rated as more complex, and students who performed the SG better understood the aim of pharmacist triage in case of cough. The influence of the SG appeared to be linked to the presence of a previous lecture in the curriculum. Discussion and conclusion: SG and TBS are effective to teach pharmacist triage. Higher SG complexity should be used to teach the aim of pharmacist triage in the case of a specific disease and could be an alternative to simulated patients. A simpler TBS does not require a previous lecture and a debriefing to be fully effective.
doi:10.1016/j.cptl.2017.11.002 pmid:29764629 fatcat:3gxfouvvuzgu3p2fg6mzlsfbh4