Wietske Kievit en Marcia Tummers
Wietske Kievit en Marcia Tummers

A serious game about the complexity of medical innovations

TLC voucher project
Duration
2024 until 2025
Project type
Education

Motivation

Developing effective medical innovations as a solution in healthcare is a complex challenge. In addition to the fact that the solution must do what it promises to do, factors such as investment, demand within the population, and competing initiatives also play a role in achieving success. Can a serious game give students insight into the complexity of developing innovations in an ever-changing context? 

Hypothesis

Wietske and Marcia use their innovation voucher to develop a serious game focused on innovation in healthcare. Research shows that forms of play in education have a connecting effect, stimulate critical thinking and thus increase learning outcomes. Their game, called Innolution, is designed to challenge students to think critically about the influence of context and coincidences on the success of innovations. To do this, the game uses a case study about lung cancer. 

Desired solution

With this educational game, Wietske and Marcia hope to better prepare students for the complexity of innovation processes. By playing the game, students will become more critical and reflective about the steps that make up an innovation process. The students map out the added value of the innovation by answering critical questions. 

Plan of action

The game is developed in collaboration with an experienced developer in educational games. After development, there will be a test phase in which feedback is collected for adjustments to the game, including the visual aspects and explainer video. Subsequently, the game will be implemented in the minor Health Technology Assessment of Surgical Innovations of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. After evaluation, the game can be definitively designed and applied in education. 

Results

As part of this project, the serious game Innolution was developed to introduce students to the complexities of medical innovation in an interactive way. An initial prototype, based on an existing board game, proved too complex and time-consuming for large-scale teaching. Consequently, a new storytelling card game was designed in collaboration with a game developer; it is easy to play, scalable and versatile. Following several rounds of testing with students and lecturers, the game has been optimised. The evaluations show that students quickly grasp the rules and find the game inspiring. 

The project resulted in a practical educational innovation that enables students to experience how factors such as uncertainty, sustainability, funding and external developments influence medical innovation. This accessible, inspiring serious game helps to achieve the learning objective and can be used in a variety of teaching contexts. 

Funding

This project is funded by a TLC voucher from the Radboud Teaching and Learning Centre. This voucher programme aims to set up projects in the field of educational innovation, lecturer development and educational research.

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Contact information

Wietske Kievit would love to tell you more about this voucher project via wietske.kievit@radboudumc.nl.