Enhancing Teaching Strategies for Newly Recruited Interns: A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Massive Open Online Courses, Simulation, and Escape Games

The induction period for newly recruited medical interns represents a critical stage in their professional training. On arrival at the hospital, interns must rapidly acquire clinical knowledge, technical skills, and adaptive behaviors to ensure patient safety and integration into the healthcare team. Innovative teaching strategies, including Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), high-fidelity simulation, and gamified approaches such as escape games, have been increasingly adopted in medical education, but comparative evidence of their effectiveness in this context remains limited.

This study is a prospective, randomized controlled trial conducted at Ibn Sina University Hospital, Rabat, Morocco. A total of 51 newly recruited medical interns will be randomly assigned to one of three intervention groups:

MOOC group: A structured online course hosted on Canvas, including four short video modules (4-5 minutes each) covering diagnosis, pathophysiology, precipitating factors, and therapeutic management of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Interactive quizzes are included between modules.

Simulation group: Participants engage in a high-fidelity simulation scenario of DKA secondary to urinary tract infection, using a mannequin in a controlled training environment. Each session is followed by a structured debriefing.

Escape game group: Interns participate in a 30-minute collaborative escape game consisting of 10 puzzles designed to guide them through the diagnostic and therapeutic steps of DKA management, encouraging teamwork and problem-solving.