Many simulation courses now exist which aim to prepare first-year doctors for the task of assessing and managing potentially deteriorating patients. Despite the substantial resources required, the degree to which participants benefit from such courses, and which aspects of the simulation training are optimal for learning, remains unclear. A systematic literature search was undertaken across seven electronic databases. Inclusion criteria were that the intervention must be a simulation of a deteriorating patient scenario that would likely be experienced by first-year doctors, and that participants being first-year doctors or in their final year of medical school. Studies reporting quantitative benefits of simulation on participants’ knowledge and simulator performance underwent meta-analyses. The search returned 1444 articles, of which 48 met inclusion criteria. All studies showed a benefit of simulation training, but outcomes were largely limited to self-rated or objective tests of knowledge, or simulator performance. The meta-analysis demonstrated that simulation improved participant performance by 16% as assessed by structured observation of a simulated scenario, and participant knowledge by 7% as assessed by written assessments. A mixed-methods analysis found conflicting evidence about which aspects of simulation were optimal for learning. The results of the review indicate that simulation is an important tool to improve first-year doctors’ confidence, knowledge and simulator performance with regard to assessment and management of a potentially deteriorating patient. Future research should now seek to clarify the extent to which these improvements translate into clinical practice, and which aspects of simulation are best suited to achieve this. © 2019, International Association of Medical Science Educators.
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