Gaming to Enhance Students’ Patient-Safety Skills: Evaluation of Air Medic Sky One

Abstract

Aim: To evaluate the effects of a patient safety game, aimed to reduce preventable adverse events in health care through educational game-playing, on satisfaction, knowledge and self-efficacy. Methods: Our institute developed a patient safety serious game called Air Medic Sky One (AMS-1), including expeditions, short lectures and biofeedback modules with a device that enables students to control the game with breath, heart rate and skin conduction, using stress reduction excercises. Final year medical students wer asked to participate. Before and after playing AMS-1, participants completed a knowledge test on patient safety topics; self-efficacy was measured with a 100 mm visual analogue scale. A post-intervention evaluation questionnaire measured satisfaction with the game. Outcomes of both knowledge tests and self efficacy questions were compared using the Student’s t- tests. Results: All 27 participants agreed that AMS-1 provides an entertaining and instructive experience; most found it time consuming (4 to 6 hours). Knowledge of patient safety issues increased significantly after playing the game. Self-efficacy measures showed a mean increase of 28.6% across different aspects of patient safety. Conclusions: AMS-1 appears to be an instructive tool that deserves further, controlled investigation in its effect on actual patient safety behavior in the clinical environment.