Dataset Information

Adapting web-based instruction to residents' knowledge improves learning efficiency: a randomized controlled trial.

ABSTRACT: Increased clinical demands and decreased available time accentuate the need for efficient learning in postgraduate medical training. Adapting Web-based learning (WBL) to learners' prior knowledge may improve efficiency.We hypothesized that time spent learning would be shorter and test scores not adversely affected for residents who used a WBL intervention that adapted to prior knowledge.Randomized, crossover trial.Academic internal medicine residency program continuity clinic.122 internal medicine residents.Four WBL modules on ambulatory medicine were developed in standard and adaptive formats. The adaptive format allowed learners who correctly answered case-based questions to skip the corresponding content.The measurements were knowledge posttest, time spent on modules, and format preference. One hundred twenty-two residents completed at least 1 module, and 111 completed all 4. Knowledge scores were similar between the adaptive format (mean +/- standard error of the mean, 76.2 +/- 0.9) and standard (77.2 +/- 0.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] for difference -3.0 to 1.0, P = .34). However, time spent was lower for the adaptive format (29.3 minutes [CI 26.0 to 33.0] per module) than for the standard (35.6 [31.6 to 40.3]), an 18% decrease in time (CI 9 to 26%, P = .0003). Seventy-two of 96 respondents (75%) preferred the adaptive format.Adapting WBL to learners' prior knowledge can reduce learning time without adversely affecting knowledge scores, suggesting greater learning efficiency. In an era where reduced duty hours and growing clinical demands on trainees and faculty limit the time available for learning, such efficiencies will be increasingly important. For clinical trial registration, see http://www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT00466453 ( http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT00466453?order=1 ).

SUBMITTER: Cook DA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2517946 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Adapting web-based instruction to residents' knowledge improves learning efficiency: a randomized controlled trial.

Cook David A DA Beckman Thomas J TJ Thomas Kris G KG Thompson Warren G WG

Journal of general internal medicine 20080701 7

<h4>Background</h4>Increased clinical demands and decreased available time accentuate the need for efficient learning in postgraduate medical training. Adapting Web-based learning (WBL) to learners' prior knowledge may improve efficiency.<h4>Objective</h4>We hypothesized that time spent learning would be shorter and test scores not adversely affected for residents who used a WBL intervention that adapted to prior knowledge.<h4>Design</h4>Randomized, crossover trial.<h4>Setting</h4>Academic inter ...[more]

PMID: 18612729

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundAcute gastroenteritis (AGE) in children is a leading cause of emergency department (ED) visits, resulting in substantial health care costs and stress for families and caregivers. The majority of pediatric AGE cases are caused by viral infections and can be managed at home using strategies to prevent dehydration. To increase knowledge of, and support health decision-making for, pediatric AGE, we developed a knowledge translation (KT) tool (fully automated web-based whiteboard animation video).ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the potential effectiveness of the web-based KT tool in terms of knowledge, health care decision-making, use of resources, and perceived benefit and value.MethodsA convenience sample of parents was recruited between December 18, 2020, and August 10, 2021. Parents were recruited in the ED of a pediatric tertiary care hospital and followed for up to 14 days after the ED visit. The eligibility criteria included parent or legal guardian of a child aged <16 years presenting to the ED with an acute episode of diarrhea or vomiting, ability to communicate in English, and agreeable to follow-up via email. Parents were randomized to receive the web-based KT tool (intervention) about AGE or a sham video (control) during their ED visit. The primary outcome was knowledge assessed before the intervention (baseline), immediately after the intervention, and at follow-up 4 to 14 days after ED discharge. Other outcomes included decision regret, health care use, and KT tool usability and satisfaction. The intervention group participants were invited to participate in a semistructured interview to gather additional feedback about the KT tool.ResultsA total of 103 parents (intervention: n=51, 49.5%, and control: n=52, 50.5%) completed the baseline and postintervention assessments. Of these 103 parents, 78 (75.7%; intervention: n=36, 46%, and control: n=42, 54%) completed the follow-up questionnaire. Knowledge scores after the intervention (mean 8.5, SD 2.6 vs mean 6.3, SD 1.7; P<.001) and at follow-up (mean 9.1, SD 2.7 vs mean 6.8, SD 1.6; P<.001) were significantly higher in the intervention group. After the intervention, parents in the intervention group reported greater confidence in knowledge than those in the control group. No significant difference in decision regret was found at any time point. Parents rated the KT tool higher than the sham video across 5 items assessing usability and satisfaction.ConclusionsThe web-based KT tool improved parental knowledge about AGE and confidence in their knowledge, which are important precursors to behavior change. Further research is needed into understanding what information and delivery format as well as other factors influence parents' decision-making regarding their child's health.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT03234777; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03234777.International registered report identifier (irrid)RR2-10.1186/s40814-018-0318-0.

Project description:BackgroundFinding work is a top priority for most people; however, this goal remains out of reach for the majority of individuals with a severe mental illness (SMI) who remain on benefits or are unemployed. Supported employment (SE) programs aimed at returning people with a severe mental illness to work are successful; however, they still leave a significant number of people with severe mental illness unemployed. Cognitive deficits are commonly found in SMI and are a powerful predictor of poor outcome. Fortunately, these deficits are amenable to treatment with cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) that significantly improves cognition in SMI. CRT combined with SE significantly increases the likelihood of individuals with severe mental illness obtaining and staying in work. However, the availability of CRT is limited in many settings.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to examine whether Web-based CRT combined with a SE program can improve the rate return to work of people with severe mental illness.MethodsA total of 86 people with severe mental illness (mean age 39.6 years; male: n=55) who were unemployed and who had joined a SE program were randomized to either a Web-based CRT program (CogRem) or an Internet-based control condition (WebInfo). Primary outcome measured was hours worked over 6 months post treatment.ResultsAt 6 months, those participants randomized to CogRem had worked significantly more hours (P=.01) and had earned significantly more money (P=.03) than those participants randomized to the WebInfo control condition. No change was observed in cognition.ConclusionsThis study corroborates other work that has found a synergistic effect of combining CRT with a SE program and extends this to the use of Web-based CRT. The lack of any improvement in cognition obscures the mechanism by which an improved wage outcome for participants randomized to the active treatment was achieved. However, the study substantially lowers the barrier to the deployment of CRT with other psychosocial interventions for severe mental illness.Trial registrationAustralian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) 12611000849998; http://www.anzctr.org.au/TrialSearch.aspx?searchTxt=12611000849998&isBasic=True (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6sMKwpeos).

Project description:BackgroundPrevious research has strongly supported the utility of spaced learning in enhancing memory, but its effectiveness in complex surgical procedures has largely been unexplored. The main objective of this study was to evaluate whether, in comparison to concentrated learning, spaced learning improves the short-term acquisition and long-term retention of cosmetic suturing skills as outcomes of surgical resident training courses.MethodsThis randomized controlled trial was conducted from February 2023 to June 2023. Surgical residents were recruited from a teaching hospital in Guangzhou, China. The participants were randomly assigned at a 1:1 ratio to either the spaced training group (40 min of training followed by a 20-minute break) or the concentrated training group (3 h of continuous training), in which they received one-on-one training for cosmetic suturing skills. The short-term acquisition and long-term retention outcomes were evaluated by three independent raters using an objective scoring scale to assess the participants' cosmetic suturing skills before the training (pretraining test), within one hour after the training (posttraining test), and three months after the completion of the training (follow-up test). The score for each participant was calculated as the average of three independent scores.ResultsThe study included 23 surgical residents, 12 in the spaced training group and 11 in the concentrated training group. The pretraining test revealed no significant difference between the groups. However, in the post-training test, the spaced training group achieved a significantly higher total score than did the concentrated training group (74.06 ± 5.87 vs. 63.43 ± 10.73, p = 0.0070). Specifically, the suture technique scores were 28.46 ± 1.78 and 22.85 ± 3.75, respectively, which were significantly different (p = 0.0002). During the long-term follow-up test, the spaced training group consistently outperformed the concentrated training group by having significantly higher total (75.60 ± 4.78 vs. 60.68 ± 10.40, p = 0.0001), suture quality (32.26 ± 4.01 vs. 26.23 ± 4.16, p = 0.0019), suture technique (28.68 ± 2.63 vs. 22.18 ± 3.94, p = 0.0001), and suturing time scores (14.67 ± 1.15 vs. 12.27 ± 6.07, p = 0.0460).ConclusionsIncorporating the principles of spaced learning into the instructional process of obtaining cosmetic suture skills for surgical residents not only significantly enhances short-term skill improvement but also contributes to the long-term retention of training outcomes.

Dataset Information

Adapting web-based instruction to residents' knowledge improves learning efficiency: a randomized controlled trial.

Publications

Adapting web-based instruction to residents' knowledge improves learning efficiency: a randomized controlled trial.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets