Artificial Intelligence-driven Virtual Standardized Pediatric Patients Trial
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Virtual standardized patients (VSPs), Case teaching manuals, Case teaching videos.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Pneumococcal Pneumonia, Rotavirus Enteritis With Hypovolemic Shock, Hand-foot-and-mouth Disease, Acute Appendicitis. Basic parameters: No limits · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- China
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Utilizing Artificial Intelligence-driven Virtual Standardized Pediatric Patients to Enhance the Capabilities of Primary Healthcare Doctors in China for Managing Common Pediatric Diseases: a Randomized Controlled Trial
Overview
Background: China's healthcare system for children faces significant challenges, particularly due to the limited pediatric service capacity of primary healthcare institutions. A shortage of effective and accessible training tools for primary care doctors further hinders progress in addressing this gap. Technological advancements, especially in artificial intelligence, offer a potential solution to improve pediatric care. Artificial intelligence-driven virtual standardized patients (VSPs), leveraging internet and virtual simulation technologies, simulate clinical cases with specific disease characteristics, providing an innovative, efficient, and flexible training method. VSPs are increasingly utilized in medical education, clinical reasoning, and licensure exams. This study focuses on using VSPs to improve the management of common pediatric conditions, which are major health concerns for children and impose significant psychological and financial burdens on families. Methods: This study will involve a three-arm randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a virtual pediatric standardized patient platform in enhancing primary care doctors' management of common pediatric diseases. At least 459 participants, including general practitioners, internal medicine practitioners, surgeons, and pediatricians from more than 10 provinces across China, will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: the virtual patient platform group, the case teaching manual group, or the case teaching video group. Five virtual patient cases covering pneumococcal pneumonia, rotavirus enteritis with hypovolemic shock, hand-foot-and-mouth disease, acute appendicitis, and respiratory failure will be developed, along with corresponding case teaching materials. After a two-week learning period, participants' disease management abilities will be assessed using clinical vignettes. The primary outcome is adherence to best clinical practice guidelines, categorized into full adherence, partial adherence, and nonadherence. Discussion: This study aims to leverage artificial intelligence for capacity enhancement, targeting the shortcomings of primary care pediatrics and using VSP to help enhance primary care pediatrics capacity. It is a randomized controlled trial involving over 300 primary healthcare institutions across more than 10 provinces in China, ensuring broad and representative participation from both developed and underdeveloped regions.
Interventions
- Behavioral Virtual standardized patients (VSPs)
Virtual standardized patients (VSPs), utilizing internet and virtual simulation technology, emulate patients with specific disease characteristics and clinical manifestations. With advantages in safety, flexibility, convenience, and efficiency, VSPs are used in medical education, clinical reasoning training, and licensure examinations. Doctors will interact with VSPs to conduct clinical simulations and training, including consultations, physical examinations, auxiliary examinations, and treatmen - Behavioral Case teaching manuals
Doctors will use case teaching manuals to enhance their capabilities for managing common pediatric diseases - Behavioral Case teaching videos
Doctors will use case teaching videos to enhance their capabilities for managing common pediatric diseases
Primary outcome measures
- Doctor adherence to best clinical practice guidelines [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
Secondary outcome measures (8)
- Dichotomous variable of doctor adherence to best clinical practice guidelines [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- The degree of accuracy of a doctor's diagnosis according to best clinical practice guidelines [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- Doctor score of examination that is directly related to handling the disease [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- Doctor score of examination that is related to expansion skills of handling the disease [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- The level at which the doctor focuses on meeting the actual needs of the patient and gives due consideration to the patient's feelings [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- Adoption of training by doctors [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- Costs to researchers of developing and implementing three types of training [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
- Doctor score of acceptability of three types of training [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 6 months]
Eligibility criteria
- Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria for Research Institutions
Inclusion criteria
- Primary and secondary hospitals
- Community health centers (stations) and clinics, as well as township health centers and village health clinics
Exclusion criteria
- Specialized medical institutions (such as specialized hospitals and dental clinics)
- Public health prevention and treatment institutions (such as tuberculosis prevention centers)
- Ethnic medicine institutions (such as Mongolian and Tibetan hospitals)
- Hospitals above the secondary level
- Hospitals that have not yet been graded (due to their short establishment time and potentially unstable operations)
- Inclusion and exclusion criteria for research subjects
Inclusion criteria
- Practicing (assistant) doctors and rural doctors working in medical institutions that meet the above conditions
- With a scope of practice only including general practice, internal medicine, surgery, and pediatrics
Exclusion criteria
-None
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: Yes
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Single blind
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
Study locations
China · 3 centers
- Yuntan Street Community Health Center — Guiyang
- Jinxi County People's Hospital — Fuzhou
- Honghe County People's Hospital — Yisa
Identifiers
NCT: NCT06699433 · Virtual pediatric patients