Game-based learning in pharmacy education: A systematic review and narrative synthesis

Authors

  • Seham Kanaan School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8757-5290
  • Mariam Dabbous School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5191-3497
  • Marwan Akel School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon & School of Education, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon & INSPECT-LB: Institut National de Santé Publique, d'Épidémiologie Clinique et de Toxicologie-Liban, Beirut, Lebanon & International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), The Hague, The Netherlands
  • Rebecca Lteif School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon
  • Mohamad Rahal School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon
  • Fouad Sakr School of Pharmacy, Lebanese International University, Beirut, Lebanon & INSPECT-LB: Institut National de Santé Publique, d'Épidémiologie Clinique et de Toxicologie-Liban, Beirut, Lebanon & UMR U955 INSERM, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, Université Paris-Est Créteil, France & École Doctorale Sciences de la Vie et de la Santé, Université Paris-Est Créteil, France https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6905-5814

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46542/pe.2023.231.629639

Keywords:

Game-based learning, Gamified learning, Gamification, Pharmacy education, Review

Abstract

Background: Studies have shown improved learning outcomes using game-based learning (GBL) in health professions education. The aim of this systematic review was to explore and summarise the current evidence related to the design, assessment methods, and outcomes of implementing GBL in pharmacy education. It also aimed to determine and the impact of gamified learning activities on students’ perception and attainment of the desired learning outcomes.

Methods: A comprehensive search was undertaken using the PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guideline was used for reporting this systematic review.

Results: A total of 22 studies involving pharmacy students were included. GBL was utilised for a variety of pharmacy-related topics or courses including major and elective didactic courses and pharmacy practice experiences. Evaluation of GBL activities was mostly based on post-game surveys or/and quizzes. All studies showed a positive impact of game-based learning on pharmacy education.

Conclusion: GBL has an important role in pharmacy education in both didactic and practicum courses. Findings show that the benefits of GBL are prominent through different areas of the pharmacy curriculum and in all professional pharmacy years.

References

Aburahma, M. H., & Mohamed, H. M. (2015). Educational games as a teaching tool in pharmacy curriculum. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 79(4), 59. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe79459

Akel, M. E., Rahal, M., Dabbous, M., Mourad, N., Dimassi, A., & Sakr, F. (2020). Experiential education in pharmacy curriculum: The Lebanese International University model. Pharmacy (Basel), 9(1), 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy9010005

Almeida, F., & Simoes, J. (2019). The role of serious games, gamification and industry 4.0 tools in the education 4.0 paradigm. Contemporary Educational Technology, 10(2), 120–136. https://doi.org/10.30935/cet.554469

Bai, S., Hew, K. F., & Huang, B. (2020). Does gamification improve student learning outcome? Evidence from a meta-analysis and synthesis of qualitative data in educational contexts. Educational Research Review, 30, 100322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2020.100322

Bangalee, V., Oosthuizen, F., Perumal-Pillay, V. A., Suleman, F., & Walters, F. (2021). Pharmacy students experience with PharmacyPhlash‒A pilot educational board game. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 13(3), 292–301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2020.10.016

Barclay, S. M., Jeffres, M. N., & Bhakta, R. (2011). Educational card games to teach pharmacotherapeutics in an advanced pharmacy practice experience. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 75(2), 33. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe75233

Ben-Zvi, T., & Carton, T. C. (2007). From rhetoric to reality: Business games as educational tools. INFORMS Transactions on Education, 8(1), 10–18. https://doi.org/10.1287/ited.8.1.10

Byusa, E., Kampire, E., & Mwesigye, A. R. (2022). Game-based learning approach on students' motivation and understanding of chemistry concepts: A systematic review of literature. Heliyon, 8(5), e09541. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09541

Chen, A. M., Plake, K. S., Yehle, K. S., & Kiersma, M. E. (2011). Impact of the geriatric medication game on pharmacy students' attitudes toward older adults. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 75(8), 158. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe758158

Chen, M. Y., & Tang, J. T. (2022). Developing a digital game for excel skills learning in higher education‒A comparative study analyzing differences in learning between digital games and textbook learning. Education and Information Technologies, 28, 4143–4172. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-11335-7

Dabbous, M., Kawtharani, A., Fahs, I., Hallal, Z., Shouman, D., Akel, M., Rahal, M., & Sakr, F. (2022). The role of game-based learning in experiential education: Tool validation, motivation assessment, and outcomes evaluation among a sample of pharmacy students. Education Sciences, 12(7), 434. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12070434

Duffull, S. B., & Peterson, A. K. (2020). Students' perceptions of playing a serious game intended to enhance therapeutic decision-making in a pharmacy curriculum. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 12(11), 1348–1353. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2020.05.011

Evans, S., Lombardo, M., Belgeri, M., & Fontane, P. (2005). The geriatric medication game in pharmacy education. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 69(3).

Gentry, S. V., Gauthier, A., L'Estrade Ehrstrom, B., Wortley, D., Lilienthal, A., Tudor Car, L., Dauwels-Okutsu, S., Nikolaou, C. K., Zary, N., Campbell, J., & Car, J. (2019). Serious gaming and gamification education in health professions: Systematic review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 21(3), e12994. https://doi.org/10.2196/12994

Grady, S. E., Vest, K. M., & Todd, T. J. (2013). Student attitudes toward the use of games to promote learning in the large classroom setting. Currents in pharmacy teaching and learning, 5(4), 263–268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2013.01.008

Hookham, G., Nesbitt, K., Cooper, J., Croft, H., & Rasiah, R. (2015). Gamification for education: Designing a pharmacy education game. Proceedings of the Artificial life and computational intelligence: First Australasian conference, Australia, 8955. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-14803-8_12

Hope, D. L., Grant, G. D., Rogers, G. D., & King, M. A. (2022). Gamification in pharmacy education: A systematic quantitative literature review. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, 31(1), 15–31. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpp/riac099

Howard-Jones, P. A., Jay, T., Mason, A., & Jones, H. (2015). Gamification of learning deactivates the default mode network. Front Psychol, 6, 1891. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01891

Kamnardsiri, T., Somwayakath, T., Leungtanawat, P., Khuwuthyakorn, P., Thinnukool, O., & Wientong, P. (2017). Designing of a game-based learning framework for training pharmacy students. Proceedings of the European Conference on Games Based Learning, Austria, 301–310.

Kennedy, D. H., Fanning, K. D., & Thornton, P. L. (2004). The age game: An interactive tool to supplement course material in a geriatrics elective. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 68(1-5), BU1.

Korenoski, A. S., Ginn, T. R., & Seybert, A. L. (2021). Use of an immersive, simulated learning game to teach pharmacy students clinical concepts of toxicology. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 13(5), 556–559. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2021.01.018

Krishnamurthy, K., Selvaraj, N., Gupta, P., Cyriac, B., Dhurairaj, P., Abdullah, A., Krishnapillai, A., Lugova, H., Haque, M., Xie, S., & Ang, E. T. (2022). Benefits of gamification in medical education. Clinical Anatomy, 35(6), 795–807. https://doi.org/10.1002/ca.23916

Lam, J. T., Gutierrez, M. A., Goad, J. A., Odessky, L., & Bock, J. (2019). Use of virtual games for interactive learning in a pharmacy curriculum. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 11(1), 51–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2018.09.012

Lambertsen, R. T., Tang, S., Davies, J., & Morecroft, C. (2016). Serious gaming for pharmacy education: Development of a serious games for teaching pharmacist communication and drug administration in a virtual hospital setting. Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Developments in eSystems Engineering (DeSE), UK, 151–156. https://doi.org/10.1109/DeSE.2016.25

Lee, C. Y., White, P. J., & Malone, D. T. (2018). Online educational games improve the learning of cardiac pharmacology in undergraduate pharmacy teaching. Pharmacy Education, 18, 298–302.

Nabhani, S., Harrap, N., Ishtiaq, S., Ling, V., Dudzinski, M., Greenhill, D., Caton, H., Philip, N., Wells, J., & Kayyali, R. (2020). Development and evaluation of an educational game to support pharmacy students. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 12(7), 786–803. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2020.02.006

Nah, F. F.-H., Zeng, Q., Telaprolu, V. R., Ayyappa, A. P., & Eschenbrenner, B. (2014). Gamification of education: A review of literature. Proceedings of the HCI in Business: First International Conference, Greece, 1, 401–409. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07293-7_39

Oestreich, J. H., & Guy, J. W. (2022). Game-based learning in pharmacy education. Pharmacy (Basel), 10(1), 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy10010011

Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., Brennan, S. E., Chou, R., Glanville, J., Grimshaw, J. M., Hróbjartsson, A., Lalu, M. M., Li, T., Loder, E. W., Mayo-Wilson, E., McDonald, S., McGuinness, L. A., Stewart, L. A., Thomas, J., Tricco, A. C., Welch, V. A., Whiting, P., & Moher, D. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. Bmj, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71

Patel, J. (2008). Using game format in small group classes for pharmacotherapeutics case studies. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 72(1), 21. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2254250/

Persky, A. M., Stegall-Zanation, J., & Dupuis, R. E. (2007). Students perceptions of the incorporation of games into classroom instruction for basic and clinical pharmacokinetics. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 71(2), 21. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1858604/

Rice, J. W. (2012). The gamification of learning and instruction: Game-based methods and strategies for training and education. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, 4(4).

Roche, V. F., Alsharif, N. Z., & Ogunbadeniyi, A. M. (2004). Reinforcing the relevance of chemistry to the practice of pharmacy through the Who Wants to Be a Med Chem Millionaire? learning game. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 68(5), 116.

Rose, T. M. (2011). A board game to assist pharmacy students in learning metabolic pathways. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 75(9), 183. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe759183

Safwan, J., Cherfan, M., Dabbous, M., Hammoudi, D., Akiki, Z., Saade, F., Akel, M., Younes, S., Rahal, M., & Bouraad, E. (2022). Faculty perceptions on online education in a school of pharmacy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pharmacy Education, 22(1), 450–457. https://doi.org/10.46542/pe.2022.221.450457

Sakr, F., Fahs, I., Dimassi, A., Younes, S., Mourad, N., Safwan, J., Akel, M., Rahal, M., & Dabbous, M. (2022). Experiential pharmacy education in trying times: Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. Pharmacy Education, 22(1), 823–834. https://doi.org/10.46542/pe.2022.221.823834

Sando, K. R., Elliott, J., Stanton, M. L., & Doty, R. (2013). An educational tool for teaching medication history taking to pharmacy students. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 77(5), 105. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe775105

Sera, L., & Wheeler, E. (2017). Game on: The gamification of the pharmacy classroom. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 9(1), 155–159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2016.08.046

Shah, S., Lynch, L. M., & Macias-Moriarity, L. Z. (2010). Crossword puzzles as a tool to enhance learning about anti-ulcer agents. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 74(7), 117. https://doi.org/10.5688/aj7407117

Stewart, D. W., Brown, S. D., Clavier, C. W., & Wyatt, J. (2011). Active-learning processes used in US pharmacy education. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 75(4), 68. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe75468

Tietze, K. J. (2007). A bingo game motivates students to interact with course material. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 71(4), 79. https://doi.org/10.5688/aj710479

van Gaalen, A. E. J., Brouwer, J., Schönrock-Adema, J., Bouwkamp-Timmer, T., Jaarsma, A. D. C., & Georgiadis, J. R. (2021). Gamification of health professions education: a systematic review. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 26(2), 683–711. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-020-10000-3

Whitman, A. C., Tanzer, K., & Nemec, E. C., 2nd. (2019). Gamifying the memorization of brand/generic drug names. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 11(3), 287–291. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2018.12.014

Wood, L., & Reiners, T. (2012). Gamification in logistics and supply chain education: Extending active learning. Internet Technologies & Society, 2012, 101–108.

Downloads

Published

06-10-2023

How to Cite

Kanaan, S., Dabbous, M., Akel, M., Lteif, R., Rahal, M., & Sakr, F. (2023). Game-based learning in pharmacy education: A systematic review and narrative synthesis. Pharmacy Education, 23(1), p. 629–639. https://doi.org/10.46542/pe.2023.231.629639

Issue

Section

Review