Augmented reality in undergraduate surgical education in final year medical students in the UK

ISRCTN	ISRCTN12062846
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN12062846
ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT)	Nil known
Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS)	Nil known
Protocol serial number	19683/002
Sponsor	Royal College of Surgeons of England
Funders	B. Braun Medical, Royal College of Surgeons of England

Submission date: 20/04/2023
Registration date: 21/04/2023
Last edited: 21/04/2023

Recruitment status: No longer recruiting
Overall study status: Completed
Condition category: Surgery

Prospectively registered

Protocol

Statistical analysis plan

Results

Individual participant data

Record updated in last year

Plain English summary of protocol

Background and study aims
The study is about testing whether using augmented reality (AR) technology can improve the way medical students learn about surgery. They will compare how well students learn with augmented reality technology versus traditional teaching methods.

Who can participate?
Final-year medical students aged 22 years and over from all medical schools in the UK

What does the study involve?
Participants will be randomly split into two groups. One group will receive augmented reality teaching on top of their normal undergraduate teaching. The other group will only receive their normal undergraduate teaching.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
The study is expected to benefit participants by improving their learning experiences, and there are no expected risks to participating.

Where is the study run from?
University College London (UCL) (UK)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
March 2022 to August 2023

Who is funding the study?
1. Royal College of Surgeons of England (UK)
2. B. Braun Medical (USA)

Who is the main contact?
Kien Hang, zchamkh@ucl.ac.uk

Contact information

Mr Arjun Nathan
Principal investigator

Gower St
London
WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

ORCID ID	0000-0002-8572-2832
Phone	+44 (0)7595 189982
Email	arjun.nathan@ucl.ac.uk

Study information

Primary study design	Interventional
Study design	Interventional randomized controlled trial
Secondary study design	Randomised controlled trial
Participant information sheet	43532_PIS.pdf
Scientific title	Augmented reality in undergraduate surgical education in final year medical students in the UK
Study acronym	AUGMENT
Study objectives	Augmented reality in undergraduate surgical education improves student SBA performance
Ethics approval(s)	Approved 16/08/2022, UCL Research Ethics Service (2 Taviton Street, London, WC1H 0BT, UK; +44 (0)20 7679 8717, Extension: 28717; ethics@ucl.ac.uk), ref: 19683/002
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied	Augmented reality in undergraduate surgical teaching
Intervention	Method of randomization: block randomization Control arm: current national undergraduate university curriculum Intervention arm: additional teaching comprising three virtual surgeries through the Proximie platform
Intervention type	Other
Primary outcome measure(s)	Student performance in Short Based Answer (SBA) questions using MRCS-based Part A questions, measured at baseline (pre-intervention) and post-intervention.
Key secondary outcome measure(s)	1. Student perception and confidence measured using a five-point Likert score at baseline (pre-intervention) and post-intervention 2. Cost-benefit analysis. The cost-benefit of the intervention will be assessed compared to traditional surgical teaching. The cost-benefit analysis will be conducted after the intervention is completed.
Completion date	01/08/2023

Eligibility

Participant type(s)	Other
Age group	Adult
Sex	All
Target sample size at registration	84
Key inclusion criteria	Final-year medical students in the UK
Key exclusion criteria	Students who are not final-year medical students in the UK
Date of first enrolment	01/01/2023
Date of final enrolment	01/06/2023

Locations

Countries of recruitment

United Kingdom
England

Study participating centre

University College London

Gower St
London
WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

Results and Publications

Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share	Yes
IPD sharing plan summary	Stored in non-publicly available repository
IPD sharing plan	The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study will be stored in a non-publicly available repository, the UCL Safe Haven (https://www.ucl.ac.uk/isd/services/file-storage-sharing/data-safe-haven-dsh). A persistent weblink to the dataset will be provided once the data is ready for sharing. The type of data stored includes demographic information, questionnaire responses, and test scores. The process for requesting access to the data is through the UCL Safe Haven. Requests for access will be reviewed by the data custodian and granted on a case-by-case basis. The dates of availability are not currently known but will be added to the study record at a later date. Consent from participants was obtained for the storage and use of their data in this study. The participant data will be anonymized before it is stored in the repository to protect the confidentiality of participants. There are no ethical or legal restrictions on the use of the data in this study.

Study outputs

Output type	Details	Date created	Date added	Peer reviewed?	Patient-facing?
Participant information sheet			21/04/2023	No	Yes
Participant information sheet	Participant information sheet	11/11/2025	11/11/2025	No	Yes

Additional files

43532_PIS.pdf: Participant information sheet

Editorial Notes

21/04/2023: Trial's existence confirmed by the UCL Research Ethics Service.