Using simulated patients in medical and health professions education

Abstract

Interactive methods, which are one of the effective training methods used in medical and health professions education enable students to participate actively in the learning process. In this context, simulated patients can be used in simulation applications which are interactive methods. The simulated patient is an educated person to revive and present the real patient scenario and offers a safe learning opportunity based on experience in a virtual or laboratory environment prior to the real patient environment. This application enables to students to increase knowledge and skill level, self-efficacy, motivation and selfconfidence, improves clinical decision making and communication skills. The aim of this study is to review simulated patient applications in medicine and health sciences education and to provide a detailed overview on using simulated patients for both teaching and assessment purposes in medical and healthcare professional education.