Effect of Videogames on Real-life Triage Patterns

Completed

• Conditions: Physician's Role; Trauma
• Interventions: Behavioral: Video games

• Registration Number: NCT04516044
• Lead Sponsor: University of Pittsburgh

Brief Summary

In 2016 and 2017 the investigators conducted two clinical trials in which emergency medicine physicians were randomized either to an intervention (customized, theoretically-based video games) or to a control (nothing or text-based education). This study will now assess long-term outcomes for physicians enrolled in those two trials to evaluate the effect of the interventions on triage practices for trauma patients who presented initially to non-trauma centers in the US between December 2016 and November 2018.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2016-10-30
• Primary Completion: 2018-12-01
• Study First Submitted: 2020-08-12
• Study First Submitted QC: 2020-08-14
• Study First Posted: 2020-08-17
• Study Completion: 2020-12-01
• Status Verified: 2021-02
• Last Update Submitted: 2021-02-03
• Last Update Posted: 2021-02-04

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 686

Inclusion Criteria

• Participated in two prior clinical trials (Physician)
• ≥65 years old (Patient)
• enrolled in Medicare fee-for-service
• sustained a moderate-severe injury (i.e. ISS [injury severity score] >15) (Patient)
• treated by physician enrolled in prior clinical trials (Patient)

Exclusion Criteria

• Did not participate in two prior clinical trials (Physician)
• <65 years old (Patient)

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Video game	Video games	Patients treated by physicians who were randomized to either play an adventure-based video game that used narrative engagement to recalibrate physician heuristics in trauma triage or a puzzle-based video game that used analogical encoding to recalibrate physician heuristics in trauma triage.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Number of patients triaged to trauma centers	1 year following the intervention	The investigators will use Medicare claims to measure the number of patients, treated by study participants, who present initially to non-trauma centers after a moderate-severe injury and are transferred to a Level I/II trauma center during that episode of care. They will compare triage patterns for patients treated by physicians in the intervention and in the control groups.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Number of moderate-severely injured patients who die 30-days after initial evaluation	1 year following the intervention	Patient mortality 30-days after evaluation for a moderate-severe injury by a physician enrolled in the trial, compared among intervention and control groups.
Frequency of resources used for patients with moderate-severe injuries treated by participants	1 year following intervention	Frequency of resources used (e.g. ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, disposition status) after initial presentation for a moderate-severe injury and treatment by a participating physician, compared among intervention and control groups.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Pittsburgh; 🇺🇸 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States