Using a Human Patient Simulator (HPS) with 1st Year Medical Students to Facilitate Learning of Cardiovascular Function Curves

The understanding of cardiovascular (CV) function curves and their use to develop heart failure (HF) treatment strategies is a difficult concept for 1 st year medical students. 68 students in groups of 8–9, were introduced to a HPS that duplicated the HF patient in their case. Their goal was to draw normal, HF, and HF following treatment CV curves based upon data from the HPS. Our hypothesis was that students may understand CV curves better by relating it to a simulated patient and a clinical setting. Methods : Students took an identical test of 6 questions pertaining to CV curves before (pre) and after (post) the HPS exercise. An exact question (#2) from the tests was asked on the cumulative final 3 months later. A 7 question survey questionnaire was also given. Results There was a 50% increase in score between the pre and post test (42.2% vs. 63.2%), with scores improving on every question. 44 students had an improvement in score, with 30 improving ≥ 2 questions. The score on question #2 improved as well (pre=29%, post=43%, final=75%). A survey given after the exercise showed that 69% of students agreed that the exercise helped to learn CV curves, 81% agreed that it helped them learn the role of cardiac mechanics in HF, and 82% would like to see the HPS used in future cases. Discussion These data suggest that the HPS may improve understanding of CV function curves both short term and 3 months later. Although it is interesting that student scores increased on the tests and feedback supports further use, more studies are needed to elucidate whether the HPS aids in the learning process.