Development and Validation of a Virtual Patient Simulator for the Management of Acute Poisoning: An Assessment of Face and Content Validity

Purpose: This study describes the development of a virtual reality simulator to train medical staff responsible for acute poisoning in early diagnosis and treatment and presents an evaluation of its face and content validity.Methods: Five clinical toxicology experts identified calcium channel blocker poisoning, neuroleptic malignant syndrome, ethylene glycol poisoning, methemoglobinemia, and organophosphate poisoning as the focus of scenario development. A three-dimensional virtual reality environment was created using a video game engine, with interaction taking place via a head-mounted display and hand controllers. Emergency physicians assessed the simulator, and a questionnaire survey was conducted to evaluate its face and content validity using a 10-point scale. The collected data were descriptively analyzed.Results: Eighteen emergency physicians with an average age of 43.9 years old with 11.3 years of experience, evaluated the simulator. Thirteen (72.2%) had no prior experience with immersive virtual reality. The simulator’s realism and ease of operation were highly rated, averaging 9 points. The initial diagnosis and treatment training effectiveness, educational content clarity, and feedback were given scores of 10 points in some scenarios. The simulator’s usefulness as a training tool was rated 9 points. The lowest score (8 points) was given for clarity of interaction in four scenarios. Positive feedback highlighted the value of experiencing rare poisoning cases and receiving feedback on treatment.Conclusion: A virtual patient simulator with five scenarios was developed to train medical staff responsible for cases of acute poisoning in the initial diagnosis and treatment. Emergency physicians evaluated the simulator as realistic and stated that it would be effective in education.