The Little Room of Horrors: Virtual Simulation in Medical Education during the Pandemic

In this episode, Zaynab and Yassin explore how Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences (MBRU) transitioned from traditional face-to-face medical simulations to an innovative virtual format during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dubbed The Little Room of Horrors, this creative approach challenged students to identify medical errors in a simulated environment, providing a safe yet impactful learning experience. The hosts discuss how MBRU developed the program in just seven days, the unexpected benefits of virtual simulations, and what this shift means for the future of medical education. Could virtual learning be the key to a more flexible, accessible, and sustainable future in healthcare training?

Link to the publication: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-022-03571-9

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Yassin: 00:00

Remember back in, like, those early pandemic days when, like, everyone and their grandma was suddenly trying to bake sourdough bread or become TikTok famous? Oh,

Zaynab: 00:08

yeah. I remember those days.

Yassin: 00:10

It was wild. Right? But now imagine if your job was a little more, shall we say, high stakes. Like, what if your job involved, you know, sticky needles in people?

Zaynab: 00:19

Okay. That took a turn.

Yassin: 00:21

Right. Medical schools, they were facing a huge GE challenge when the pandemic hit. I mean, how do you teach those essential hands on skills when everyone's hands are, well, supposed to be off limits?

Zaynab: 00:32

Yeah. You can't exactly learn surgery from a textbook. You're right. Medical education really relies heavily on that hands on training and for good reason.

Yassin: 00:39

Exactly. And that's where our deep dive begins today. We're gonna unpack this really fascinating research paper about how one medical school tackled this totally unprecedented challenge. They came up with a solution they called, wait for it, The Little Room of Horrors.

Zaynab: 00:55

The Little Room of Horrors. Okay. I'm intrigued, but that name definitely sounds more like a cheesy horror movie than a medical school.

Yassin: 01:01

Right.

Zaynab: 01:02

But in all seriousness, simulation is absolutely crucial in medical training, and it's not just about learning procedures by rote either. It's about practicing communication, teamwork, making decisions under pressure.

Yassin: 01:15

And doing all of that in a safe environment where mistakes don't have those real world consequences.

Zaynab: 01:19

Exactly. For medical students, those high pressure situations are just an inevitable part of the job. So simulation really helps them build the confidence and skills they need to navigate those moments effectively.

Yassin: 01:31

So important when you're dealing with, you know, people's lives. So let's dive into the specifics of this research. It centers on the Mohammed bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences, MBRU, for short in the UAE. And you know how we were all sort of thrown into the deep end when the pandemic hit

Zaynab: 01:47

Oh, yeah.

Yassin: 01:47

MBRU? They had to transition their entire medical simulation program online, and get this, in just 7 days.

Zaynab: 01:55

7 days. Wow. They had just 7 days to figure out a completely new approach to teaching these incredibly important hands on skills.

Yassin: 02:02

7 days. It's incredible, isn't it? I mean, it really puts things into perspective when you think about it, the whole world going remote, like, overnight.

Zaynab: 02:08

I know. Right? It was wild.

Yassin: 02:10

But we're not just talking about, like, recording lectures and just calling it a day. Right?

Zaynab: 02:13

Mhmm.

Yassin: 02:14

MBRU had to find a way to actually replicate this complex hands on simulation experience virtually.

Zaynab: 02:22

Yeah. That's a whole other level.

Yassin: 02:23

It's like imagine trying to teach someone how to drive a car, but all you have is, like, a computer screen.

Zaynab: 02:28

Yeah. Yeah. Tall order for

Yassin: 02:29

sure. Right. So how did they pull it off? What did this virtual simulation actually look like?

Zaynab: 02:35

Well, they had to get seriously creative. Right? They had to use the resources they had available at the time.

Yassin: 02:41

Yeah.

Zaynab: 02:41

It's like, you know, think of it like this. Instead of having that dream kitchen with all the fancy gadgets, you're stuck with, I don't know, a hot plate and a prayer Right. But you're determined to make, like, a gourmet meal.

Yassin: 02:54

Right. Resourcefulness at its finest. Exactly. Okay. So let's unpack this little room of horrors.

Yassin: 02:59

What exactly is so horrifying about it?

Zaynab: 03:02

Okay. So it's not about creepy crawlies or anything like that.

Yassin: 03:05

K.

Zaynab: 03:05

It's more about, well, common medical errors. So the MBRU team, they created this prerecorded video of a simulated medical ward.

Yassin: 03:16

K.

Zaynab: 03:16

But here's the twist. They filled it with these, like, subtle mistakes.

Yassin: 03:20

Oh, interesting.

Zaynab: 03:21

Yeah. So they were replicating a scenario with real stakes, but virtually

Yassin: 03:26

So it's like a digital scavenger hunt, but for medical mishaps.

Zaynab: 03:30

Precisely. Students could basically enter this virtual award, and they were tasked with spotting these errors

Yassin: 03:37

Oh, cool.

Zaynab: 03:37

Just like they would in those real life situations.

Yassin: 03:39

Oh, that's a really good way to do it, especially with the limitations. Right.

Zaynab: 03:42

Exactly. And this approach really helps standardize the experience.

Yassin: 03:46

Yeah. That makes sense.

Zaynab: 03:47

So it ensured that all students were exposed to the same learning points.

Yassin: 03:51

Right. Regardless of, like, their location, Internet connection, all of that.

Zaynab: 03:54

Exactly.

Yassin: 03:55

It's amazing how they were able to turn a global pandemic into this innovative medical simulation.

Zaynab: 04:00

I know. It's really cool, and they didn't stop there. Oh. They also had to figure out how to recreate those all important debriefing sessions that usually happen after a simulation.

Yassin: 04:10

Oh, right. Right. Can you explain what those are and why they're so critical to the learning process?

Zaynab: 04:15

Yeah. So debriefings are these structured discussions where students and instructors can analyze the simulation together. They discuss, you know, what went well, what could have been done differently.

Yassin: 04:26

So it's like a learning moment from the from the actual, like, simulation itself.

Zaynab: 04:30

Exactly. It's where the real moments happen. You know?

Yassin: 04:34

It sounds like they really did think of everything, but did it, like, actually work? Did the students actually feel like they were getting, you know, the same quality of education even though it was all virtual?

Zaynab: 04:44

That's the $1,000,000 question. Right? And to answer it, the MBRU team, they didn't just assume it works. They actually studied the student experience.

Yassin: 04:52

Oh, sweet.

Zaynab: 04:53

And what they found was actually pretty surprising.

Yassin: 04:56

Okay. Now you've got me on the edge of my seat. Give us the scoop.

Zaynab: 04:58

The student response was overwhelmingly positive. Really? Yeah. They didn't feel shortchanged at all just because it wasn't the typical, you know, hands on simulation. In fact, some students even said that the virtual format actually made them more comfortable participating.

Yassin: 05:15

Wow. That's so interesting. Why do you think that is? Like, stage fright in the surgical room maybe.

Zaynab: 05:20

That's exactly what the researchers thought. The virtual environment might have felt less intimidating, especially for students who are naturally a bit on the shy side. You know, they could participate at their own pace. No pressure of everyone watching their every move.

Yassin: 05:34

Yeah. That makes a lot of sense. It makes you wonder if there are all these hidden benefits to virtual learning environments that we just haven't really fully explored yet.

Zaynab: 05:42

I think so. And there's another bonus here. Remember how we talked about the prerecorded nature of this whole simulation?

Yassin: 05:48

Yeah. Yeah.

Zaynab: 05:48

Well, that means that MBR used virtual little room of horrors. It could be used again and again

Yassin: 05:53

Oh, that's a good point.

Zaynab: 05:54

Which makes it a much more sustainable option than traditional simulation.

Yassin: 05:58

It's like that saying necessity is the mother of invention. Right? They found this creative solution to a very real problem, but they also might have stumbled on a teaching tool that's actually even better for some students and definitely better for the planet.

Zaynab: 06:13

Definitely. And it makes you really appreciate the ingenuity and resilience of educators all around the world. You know, they were really challenged to completely rethink their approach to teaching.

Yassin: 06:25

It really does. And for all of us, it makes you think twice about what we can accomplish when we're forced to think outside the box.

Zaynab: 06:32

For sure.

Yassin: 06:33

So for our listeners, what's the big takeaway here? What can we all learn from MBRU and their little room of horrors?

Zaynab: 06:41

I think this research shows us that the future of learning, it might be way more flexible and adaptable than we ever thought possible.

Yassin: 06:48

Yeah.

Zaynab: 06:48

And that goes way beyond medical school. Yeah. Just imagine learning to fly a plane or cook a gourmet meal or even perform stand up comedy all from your living room.

Yassin: 06:57

That's wild.

Zaynab: 06:58

Right. It's pretty amazing.

Yassin: 06:59

It really makes you wonder what other skills we could be teaching and learning virtually. Who knows what the future holds?

Zaynab: 07:05

Exactly.

Yassin: 07:06

Maybe a little room of podcasters doesn't sound so far fetched after all.

Zaynab: 07:10

There we go. Now you're talking.

Yassin: 07:11

That's it for today's deep dive, folks. We'll be back next time with another fascinating look at the world of research. Until then, keep those brains curious.