Date of Conferral

3-19-2025

Date of Award

March 2025

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Education

Advisor

Amy White

Abstract

Globally, there remains a high occurrence of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The problem under study was the lack of information about the experiences of health professions students with a serious game on infection control. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore health professions student experiences with a serious game on infection control as a tool to reinforce learning. This study was framed by Bonwell and Eison’s active learning theory and Kolb’s experiential learning cycle. The participants were 12 health professions students who played an online serious game on infection control. The data were collected from semistructured interviews with participants following gameplay. An inductive thematic analysis approach and the constant comparative method were used to analyze the participants’ interview data. Six themes emerged: (a) participants directly connected actions and outcomes, (b) engagement in the game reinforced learning and metacognition, (c) game play reinforced participant understanding of the theory to practice connection, (d) participants articulated value from specific game elements and design features, (e) participants identified their roles and responsibilities within the broader clinical setting, and (f) participant reactions to scenarios connect to future clinical practice. The findings from this study may contribute to meaningful social change by informing how games are used in health professions curriculum to reinforce infection prevention and control education and, as a result, reduce the rates of HAIs and significantly reduce the burden they cause to patients, their families, and the healthcare system.

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