Abstract
Purpose: To safely care for their newborn patients, health-care professionals (HCP) must undergo frequent training to improve and maintain neonatal resuscitation knowledge and skills. However, the current approach to neonatal resuscitation simulation training is time and resource-intensive, and often inaccessible. Digital neonatal resuscitation simulation may present a convenient alternative for more frequent training.Method: Fifty neonatal HCPs participated in the study (44 female; 27 nurses, 3 nurse practitioners, 14 respiratory therapists, 6 doctors). This study was conducted at a tertiary perinatal center in Edmonton, Canada from April–August 2019, with 2-month (June–October 2019) and 5-month (September 2019–January 2020) follow-up. Neonatal HCPs were recruited by volunteer sampling to complete a demographic survey, pre-test (baseline knowledge), two digital simulation scenarios (intervention), and post-test (knowledge acquisition). Two months later, participants repeated the post-test (knowledge retention). Five months after the initial intervention, participants completed a post-test using a table-top simulation (knowledge transfer). Longitudinal analyses were used to compare participants' performance over time.Results: Overall the proportion of correct performance increased: 21/50 (42%) passed the pre-test, 39/50 (78%) the post-test, 30/43 (70%) the 2-month post-test, and 32/40 (80%) the 5-month post-test. GLMM and GEE analyses revealed that performance on all post-tests was significantly better than the performance on the pre-test. Therefore, training with the RETAIN digital simulation effectively improves, maintains, and transfers HCPs' neonatal resuscitation knowledge.Conclusions: Digital simulation improved, maintained, and helped transfer HCPs' neonatal resuscitation knowledge over time. Digital simulation presents a promising approach for frequent neonatal resuscitation training, particularly for distance-learning applications.
Highlights
Each year, ∼10% of infants worldwide need help to breathe at birth
Despite widespread uptake of the simulationbased Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP), Healthcare professional (HCP) remain dangerously underprepared for clinical neonatal resuscitation events due to decay in clinical skills after training [3]
This study aimed to examine if training with a digital simulation improves HCPs’ neonatal resuscitation knowledge over time
Summary
Each year, ∼10% of infants worldwide need help to breathe at birth. To safely care for these newborn patients, health-care professionals (HCPs) must master their knowledge and decisionmaking skills outlined by the neonatal resuscitation algorithm. One million infants still die each year from asphyxia at birth [1] Half of these deaths are caused by deficiencies in HCPs’ competence to safely provide care [2]. Despite widespread uptake of the simulationbased Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP), HCPs remain dangerously underprepared for clinical neonatal resuscitation events due to decay in clinical skills after training [3]. One reason for this persistent problem is that current simulationbased education is resource demanding, requiring lab space, specialized equipment, and trained instructors [4]. Frequent simulation-based education opportunities are overall inaccessible by most HCPs [5]
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