Effectiveness of Video-Assisted Debriefing in Simulation-Based Health Professions Education A Systematic Review of Quantitative Evidence

Background: Debriefing helps learners to gain knowledge through guided reflection and discussion. Video-assisted debriefing (VAD) refers to adding video review during the debriefing process. Purpose: This review evaluated the effectiveness of VAD on learners' reactions, learning, and behavior compared with verbal debriefing (if possible) and identified its effective elements. Methods: A structured search was conducted in PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Web of Science, and PsycINFO. The quality of the included studies was evaluated using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument. Results: Twenty-three studies published between 2002 and 2017 were selected. Results showed that VAD improved learners' experience, attitude, and performance, but it did not show its advantage over verbal debriefing on knowledge acquisition. Effective elements included using experienced debriefers, curriculum-embedded simulation, a structured debriefing, and the time between 10 and 90 minutes. Conclusions: VAD improved learning outcomes and offered comparable benefits as verbal debriefing.