TITLE:
The Effectiveness of a Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Computer Game as a Learning Tool for Nursing Students
AUTHORS:
Sing-Ling Tsai, Sinkuo Chai, Kai-Hsiang Chuang
KEYWORDS:
Computer Game, Student Nurse, Teaching Strategy, Outpatient Clinic, Pre-/Post-Control Experimental Design
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Nursing,
Vol.5 No.7,
July
9,
2015
ABSTRACT: Simulation games that are close to actual clinical situations can assist students in the learning process and, through the active presentation of subject material, help them acquire necessary knowledge. The aims of this study were to develop a computer game focused on caring for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the outpatient clinic and to evaluate the nursing students’ change in knowledge and their satisfaction score after they played this computer game. This study had a randomized pre-/post-control experimental design. How to assess and care for patients with dyspnea episodes, the use of inhalants, the effects of weather changes, and breathing exercises for patients with COPD were the key content elements of the computer game developed by the study team. The COPD care knowledge test and satisfaction questionnaire were the evaluation instruments. Sixty-eight junior nursing students participated in this study. Of these 68 participants, 35 were randomly assigned to the control group and 33 were randomly assigned to the experimental group. Each group finished the pretest, then played the game for 20 minutes, and then did the post-test questionnaire. The results of this study determined that the COPD care knowledge score was significantly improved after playing the game in the experimental group (t = 2.24, P