(361) Impact of Pre-Briefing and Worked-out Modeling to Reduce Cognitive Overload During an Interprofessional Simulation

Objective : Cognitive load theory suggests that educators should optimize intrinsic (IL) and germane load (GL) so that a task is appropriately challenging while optimizing the learning environment to reduce extraneous load (EL). The objective was to compare differences in self-perceived cognitive load between those who received and those who did not receive pre-briefing and worked-out modeling (WOM) prior to a simulation. The hypothesis is that pre-briefing and WOM would reduce EL while optimizing GL and IL.

Methods: Final year pharmacy (N=12) and physician assistant (N=41) students participated in a pediatric escape room. Teams were randomized to a control (7) or intervention arm (7). The control group received a short orientation comprising of a team icebreaker then went straight to the escape room. The intervention group participated in the same orientation then received pre-briefing comprising of detailed information on the resources in the escape room. They then completed five pediatric cases featuring each disease they would manage in the escape room (WOM). Post-event, students completed the cognitive load assessment scales in simulation (CLAS-Sim) and one question regarding their knowledge of pediatrics on a scale 1= “much worse” to 5= “much improved”. An independent t-test was used to assess differences in CLAS-Sim between control and intervention groups.

Results: Preliminary analysis showed intervention arm reported significantly higher IL (control vs intervention 5.85 vs 6.58; p=0.046). The intervention arm reported better GL (control vs intervention 5.44 vs 6.95; p=0.002) and lower EL (control vs intervention 5.07 vs 4.03; p=0.025). On the question about their knowledge of pediatrics, the intervention arm had higher average scores.

Conclusions: Incorporating pre-briefing and WOM before simulation improved GL and reduced EL but also resulted in higher IL.