Education Via Simulation: Teaching Safe Chest Percussion for Pre-term Infants

Educational techniques including active practice with patient simulations may provide an effective alternative learning experience to the provision of specific theoretical knowledge alone. This study investigated the effect of active practice of percussive technique on a simulated pre-term infant before and after an education session. In a within-subject test-retest study of 37 final-year physiotherapy students from the University of South Australia, subjects percussed a pre-term infant model for 1 minute on two separate occasions, separated by an education session including demonstration. A follow-up questionnaire concerning the key components of safe pre-term infant percussive technique was completed by final-year students 5 months after the education session. A repeatable four-component technique scoring system and force (g/cm2) were recorded throughout each testing session. Forces were compared between pre- and post-education tests using a paired t test and acceptable technique using the Chi-squared test. Of subjects, 3% demonstrated overall acceptable technique prior to the education session, whereas 97% fulfilled the criteria for acceptable technique following education. Students involved with the pre-term infant model demonstrated better recall of the key components of the technique. Significantly better educational outcomes were found for students when theoretical and practical experience were combined.