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Study of Two Teaching Techniques to Teach Cardiac Auscultation to Physicians

NCT01596465 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 83

Last updated 2021-06-02

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Our objective was to test two educational interventions for teaching cardiac auscultation: self-directed learning using portable audio files versus a single, massed multimedia lecture intervention similar to current best practice, to determine which would most effectively increase recognition of common cardiac sounds by physicians. The investigators hypothesized that doctors learning on their own time could better improve their skills.

Conditions

  • Heart Murmur

Interventions

OTHER

Self-Study using MP3 Player

Participants in the interventional arm of the study were given an MP3 player which contained eight, 15-second heart sound files (7 pathologic heart sound files and 1 normal heart sound file) alternated with nine leisure songs. MP3 players could play files in order or "shuffle" files in random order. Each heart sound file was introduced by the narrated phrase "Identify this sound,", followed by 10 beats of a heart sound recording, then the narrated identification of the heart sound. Participants were asked to use the MP3 player in order to improve their auscultation skills as often as they could and asked to record their activities while listening, but were given no further training.

OTHER

Multimedia Lecture

Following the pretest, participants in the control arm received a 1-hour multimedia lecture (Power Point) taught by the same faculty member (AGK), which reviewed the pathophysiology, exacerbating and relieving factors, as well as visual diagrams of the heart sounds. The normal and seven pathologic heart sounds were played for participants during the lecture for a total of 2 minutes through high-quality home stereo speakers, exposing learners to 1280 beats in the 1-hour session. Abnormal sounds were taught in groups of systolic, diastolic and extra sounds, and were first introduced by name, and then as unknowns using mixed practice in each of the three sections.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • The Reading Hospital and Medical Center

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Anthony A Donato, MD · The Reading Hospital and Medical Center

  • Antony G Kaliyadan, MD · The Reading Hospital and Medical Center

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2011-01-31
Primary Completion
2011-06-30
Completion
2012-10-09

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT01596465 on ClinicalTrials.gov