Sommer Michael, Fritz Angelika Hiroko, Thrien Christian, Kursch Angelika, Peters Tim
Dresden University of Technology, Medical Interprofessional Training Center, Dresden, Germany.
University of Duisburg-Essen, Faculty of Medicine, Simulation Patient Program, Essen, Germany.
GMS J Med Educ. 2019 May 16;36(3):Doc27. doi: 10.3205/zma001235. eCollection 2019.
In German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), simulated patients (SPs) have been a fixture for years and are used in teaching and examinations. As part of ongoing methodological standardization efforts and to support current and future faculty and curriculum developments, this exploratory study systematically investigates how and under what framework and conditions SPs are currently used in German-speaking countries. The online questionnaire developed in cooperation with the Committee for Simulated Patients of the Society for Medical Education comprises 58 questions covering the organization and administration, size and design of the SP pool, general conditions and minimum standards for the assignments of the SPs. All medical faculties from Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland were invited to participate in the survey and a descriptive data analysis was performed. 38 responses from 45 faculties were included in the evaluation of the survey (response rate: 84.4%). Most SP programs are affiliated with the Office of the Dean of Studies and skills labs or training centers and funded by faculty resources. Both the working hours in the SP programs and the qualifications of the employees vary extensively. The same applies to the number and average age of the employed SPs. On average each faculty uses 1,290 SP hours per year (min=45, max=6,500). The majority of SPs are used in a teaching environment, together with lecturers. At all sites, SPs provide feedback to students. This is always based on a uniform standard. All SPs receive training, which predominantly focuses on playing their role and giving feedback. There are a variety of SP programs in German-speaking countries. While there are a few clear similarities (for example, feedback from SPs), many organizational and methodological aspects are handled differently. Although this allows innovation and flexibility, it also weakens the didactic SP method in its standardization and thus in the comparability of quality. A certain degree of standardization and high methodical quality is of great importance, especially in scientific and faculty internal discussions and with a view to the use of SPs in high-stakes examinations which must be improved in the future.
在德语国家（德国、奥地利、瑞士），模拟患者（SPs）多年来一直是固定配置，并用于教学和考试。作为正在进行的方法标准化工作的一部分，为了支持当前和未来的教师及课程发展，这项探索性研究系统地调查了德语国家目前如何以及在何种框架和条件下使用模拟患者。与医学教育协会模拟患者委员会合作开发的在线问卷包含58个问题，涵盖模拟患者库的组织与管理、规模与设计以及模拟患者分配的一般条件和最低标准。德国、奥地利和瑞士德语区的所有医学院都受邀参与调查，并进行了描述性数据分析。调查评估纳入了45所医学院中的38份回复（回复率：84.4%）。大多数模拟患者项目隶属于学习院长办公室以及技能实验室或培训中心，并由教师资源提供资金。模拟患者项目中的工作时间以及员工资质差异很大。受雇模拟患者的数量和平均年龄情况也是如此。平均而言，每所医学院每年使用1290个模拟患者小时（最小值 = 45，最大值 = 6500）。大多数模拟患者用于教学环境，与讲师一起。在所有地点，模拟患者都会向学生提供反馈。这始终基于统一标准。所有模拟患者都接受培训，培训主要侧重于扮演角色和提供反馈。德语国家有各种各样的模拟患者项目。虽然有一些明显的相似之处（例如，模拟患者提供反馈），但许多组织和方法方面的处理方式各不相同。虽然这允许创新和灵活性，但也削弱了模拟患者教学方法的标准化，从而影响了质量的可比性。一定程度的标准化和高方法质量非常重要，特别是在科学和教师内部讨论中，以及考虑到在高风险考试中使用模拟患者的情况，未来必须加以改进。
