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Integrating problem-based learning with virtual simulation in trauma orthopedic education: effects on learning outcomes and student satisfaction.

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Τίτλος: Integrating problem-based learning with virtual simulation in trauma orthopedic education: effects on learning outcomes and student satisfaction.
Συγγραφείς: Xue G; Department of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University, Yijishan Hospital, Zheshan West Road, Wuhu, China., Zhang X; Department of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University, Yijishan Hospital, Zheshan West Road, Wuhu, China., Ji S; Department of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University, Yijishan Hospital, Zheshan West Road, Wuhu, China., Qi J; Department of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University, Yijishan Hospital, Zheshan West Road, Wuhu, China. qijin@wnmc.edu.cn.
Πηγή: BMC medical education [BMC Med Educ] 2026 Jun 01; Vol. 26 (1). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jun 01.
Τύπος έκδοσης: Journal Article; Randomized Controlled Trial
Γλώσσα: English
Στοιχεία περιοδικού: Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101088679 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1472-6920 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14726920 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Med Educ Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s): Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-
Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): Problem-Based Learning*/methods , Orthopedics*/education , Students, Medical*/psychology , Simulation Training*, Humans ; Clinical Competence ; Male ; Personal Satisfaction ; Female ; Educational Measurement ; Virtual Reality ; Adult
Περίληψη: Background: Trauma orthopedics is a key component of orthopedic clinical education, but its teaching is often limited by complex fracture patterns, high demands for spatial understanding, and insufficient opportunities for hands-on practice. Although problem-based learning (PBL) and virtual simulation have each shown educational value, evidence regarding their combined use in trauma orthopedic teaching remains limited. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of an integrated PBL and virtual simulation teaching model in trauma orthopedic education.
Methods: This assessor-blinded randomized controlled study included 50 clinical medical students undertaking internships at the First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University between July 2024 and June 2025. Participants were randomly assigned to a control group (n = 25), which received traditional lecture-based teaching, or an experimental group (n = 25), which received PBL combined with virtual simulation. Outcomes included theoretical knowledge, clinical skills, critical thinking ability, student evaluation of teaching effectiveness, and teaching satisfaction. Data were analyzed using t tests and chi-square tests.
Results: No significant between-group differences were observed in baseline theoretical knowledge or clinical skills scores before teaching. After the intervention, the experimental group achieved significantly higher written examination scores than the control group (88.48 ± 4.02 vs. 77.04 ± 5.31,mean difference = 11.44,95% CI: 8.76 - 14.12, p < 0.01) and significantly higher practical operation scores (86.28 ± 3.18 vs. 76.52 ± 3.39,mean difference = 9.76,95% CI :7.89 - 11.63,p < 0.01). The experimental group also showed higher total critical thinking scores (314.12 ± 10.68 vs. 270.28 ± 19.76,mean difference = 43.84,95% CI: 34.70 - 52.98, p < 0.05), overall teaching effectiveness scores (17.72 ± 1.24 vs. 12.72 ± 1.02,mean difference = 5.00,95% CI: 4.35 to 5.65,p < 0.01), and total teaching satisfaction scores (86.96 ± 6.46 vs. 70.24 ± 8.71,mean difference = 16.72,95% CI:12.35 - 21.09,p < 0.05).
Conclusions: The integration of PBL with virtual simulation improved theoretical performance, clinical skills, critical thinking, and learning satisfaction in trauma orthopedic teaching, and may represent an effective strategy for clinical education reform in this field.
(© 2026. The Author(s).)
Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical University.The patients who provided the original imaging data for the model were informed that their image data would be anonymized and used, and their consent were obtained. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
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Grant Information: 2025jyxm057 The Quality Engineering Project of Wannan Medical University; 2025kcsz03 the Quality Assurance and Teaching Reform Project of Wannan Medical University; 2024dshwyx033 the New Era Education Quality Engineering Project Graduate Mentor Overseas Training Program; YR20220214 the Talent Introduction Science Foundation of Yijishan Hospital, Wannan Medical University; 2024AH040249 the Major Natural Science Research Project of Anhui Provincial Department of Education
Contributed Indexing: Keywords: Clinical skills; Critical thinking; Medical education; Problem-based learning; Trauma orthopedics; Virtual simulation
Entry Date(s): Date Created: 20260531 Date Completed: 20260804 Latest Revision: 20260804
Update Code: 20260804
DOI: 10.1186/s12909-026-09558-0
PMID: 42219473
Βάση Δεδομένων: MEDLINE
Περιγραφή
ISSN:1472-6920
DOI:10.1186/s12909-026-09558-0