Serious Game-based Development of Obesity Intervention Skills

PROJECT DESCRIPTIONSerious Game based Development of Obesity Intervention Skills Intended ImpactMedical students are not adequately prepared with the clinical skills they need to intervene with overweight or obese patients in order to help curtail the epidemic of obesity in the United StatesThe ObesityTxChallenge project addresses this practice and training gap via novel tablet and web based training of medical studentsThe project strives to improve the assessment and intervention skills of medical students by modifying our unique Clinical EncountersD Patient Training Environmentdeveloped for our Pain Tx Challenge product with to deliver an enhanced serious game based simulationThe curriculum will be based on a modification of ourhour obesity training for practicing doctorslocated at ImpactObesity comTo reach our goal of improving outcomes of patients with overweight or obesityvia Obesity Tx Challengestudents will conduct interviews and examine virtuale gcomputer generatedpatients and receive differing simulated patient responsese gacceptanceconfusionrefusalsuspicious behaviorVia the product s unique branched path learning and time pressurestudents will make choices and see the results later in the experienceMultiple pathsand outcomesenhance realismenthusiasmchanges in attitudeand educational effectVirtual preceptors identify studentsincorrect or less than optimal clinical choices and decisions and weak patient provider interaction skills and provide feedbackThe complex biological basis of obesity medicine is taught via a UnityD based "breakout" learning experience to provide a basic science foundation for the clinical knowledgeLearners select physical exam components to fully investigate weight status as well as select and interpret diagnostic testsPlayer students categorize overweight and obesity via standard measuresweightBMIabdominal circumferenceto establish a diagnosis of obesity or assess overweightThey develop an evidence based comprehensive treatment plan that includes lifestyle modificationinter professional collaborationsuch as with dietitianscounselorsor weight loss programsappropriate use of medications and weight loss surgerymotivational interventionsfollow up recommendationsand referral as necessaryGame points and visual rewards reinforce best practice choices and enhance student engagementThe game s deliberate practice efficiently provides a wide variety of clinical experiences over time and an opportunity to develop useful skills as students work with therds of adult patients who are overweight or obeseThe training offers an opportunity to establish lifelong practice patterns that will assist in stemming the obesity epidemicPhase I will specifically demonstrate product feasibility and acceptability by completingneeds analyses and preference testing with target audience students and facultya training framework and game design documenta semi functionalinteractive prototype of the planned training with realistic computer generated patients and explanatory biological animationsusing UnityD which can be delivered inDstandard monitorsandD contextssuch as Oculus VRassessments to be used in the Phase II evaluative study of the productandalpha usability testing of the prototype with medical students and assessment of preferenceacceptability and effectiveness of the animation presentationsPhase II will complete the ObesityTxChallenge productproduce the ObesityTxChallenge Implementation Guide for faculty preceptors and training directors to implement the gameand evaluate the game s effectiveness with a population of medical studentsA robust evaluation of the game will assess learner response to this novel approach in terms of acceptanceenthusiasmand impact on skillsconfidence and attitude via a randomizedcross overwait list controlpre test posttest designIt will compare change in target clinical skills and core competencies related to overweight and obesity assessment and interventionThe robust assessment of ObesityTxChallenge informs our own environment and provides guidance to other researchers and educators regarding the ability of game based training to instill clinical skills and behaviors in students