How to Use TeleSimBox “Off the Shelf” to Connect Remote Content Experts With In-Person Simulation Participants

Abstract

In this technical report, we describe how to use TeleSimBox to run a remotely facilitated simulation to connect the facilitator with learners at a distant site. This method was developed to comply with safety measures imposed during the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic to reduce the risk of viral exposure and transmission. Here, we present one example where a telesimulation naïve facilitator was trained as an in-person facilitator to enable the in-situ medical student and resident learners to participate in a pediatric emergency simulation exercise remotely guided by an off-site content expert. The case of neonatal shock was run five times during a half-day emergency department (ED) educational program with one to four participants per session. 14/15 (93%) participants completed evaluations and felt that the simulation met the case learning objectives and that connecting with the remote facilitator was useful for their learning. Feedback from the one newly trained in-person facilitator was that the tool was easy to learn how to use quickly, and the process of connecting with a remote expert was worthwhile for learners. To grab this web-based toolkit off the proverbial shelf and successfully run a telesimulation session from start to finish took approximately one hour; 20 minutes were spent in preparation the day prior and 40 minutes to set up and run the simulations the day of. We believe that this is a low-cost, efficient, and perceived to be an effective method to connect remotely located content experts and learners to engage in a simulation-based education activity when access to in-person resources and personnel is limited.