A Randomized Educational Interventional Trial of Spaced Education During a Pediatric Rotation

Objective Spacing of educational material over time has been shown to improve learning efficiency and long‐term knowledge retention. We evaluated the impact of adding a spaced education curriculum to a month‐long pediatric rotation. Methods This was a randomized controlled educational intervention trial of residents on a rotation in a pediatric emergency department. Participants were randomized to the standard curriculum or the standard curriculum with integrated spaced education. The intervention used an automated platform to electronically deliver questions to user e‐mail or mobile devices and provided instant feedback. Our primary outcome was proportion of correctly answered questions following the rotation. Our secondary outcomes included test performance at 3 months, change in clinical confidence, and satisfaction with the spaced learning. Learner opinion of the platform was assessed by postrotation survey. Results Of 194 eligible trainees, 122 were enrolled and randomized. A total of 107 of the enrolled residents (88%) completed the immediate postrotation assessment, 48 of whom received spaced education. Sixty residents completed the 3‐month follow‐up. There were no differences between the control and intervention groups in baseline knowledge. The intervention group performed better than the control group on the postrotation assessment (mean difference = 5.4%, 95% confidence interval = 0.1–10.7) when controlled for didactic attendance and clinical exposure. Change in confidence did not differ between groups. Eighty‐seven percent of spaced education learners would participate in a similar model in the future. Conclusion Spaced education during a pediatric emergency medicine rotation is an effective adjunct to a standard curriculum. Participants showed improvement on postrotation knowledge performance and enjoyed this educational approach.