| Simulation technology promises significant changes in the training of health care professionals, heralding a new era for medical education with the advent of new teaching tools for learning basic physical exam skills to surgical procedures. However, these new tools require evaluation.;This study evaluated a newly developed pelvic examination simulator. The simulator consists of a partial mannequin constructed in the likeness of an adult human female, instrumented internally with several electronic sensors that communicate indirectly with a graphical interface providing the user with immediate visual feedback regarding performance.;A randomized field study with eighty-seven medical students was conducted over an eight-week period in a pre-existing medical school course designed to teach medical students the essentials of physical examination. Patient educators provided both content material and hands-on experience for the students during special sessions, which allowed for implementation of a controlled study with evaluation from patient educators.;Analysis of the simulator as a teaching tool showed that students trained using the simulator readily used the device as a self-learning and self-assessment tool. In contrast, students trained using traditional teaching methods were heavily dependent on physician instructors for guidance and feedback. Students using the simulator were also more likely to take on a teaching role with their classmates, demonstrating the simulator promotes group learning as well. In addition, student evaluation by patient educators showed that students who were trained using the simulator learned skills that were appropriate and transferable to real-life clinical situations, and were rated significantly higher on rapport when compared to their classmates who were trained using traditional teaching methods, p < .05.;As an assessment tool, measures of performance developed from raw simulator data were shown to be valid when compared to other known assessment methods, p < .05. In addition, the simulator distinguished between expert and novice users, p < .05, and tracked student learning over a period of time, establishing a learning curve. In summary, this study has demonstrated that the simulator is a reliable teaching and assessment tool with construct and criterion-referenced validity. Further studies on content validity must be done. |
