Gamification in medical education: An approach to enhance active engagement of students

Abstract

Technology has found its root and application in all sectors, and the same stands true in the field of medical education. Moreover, with the emergence of the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic, the use of technology in online teaching-learning and assessment has increased immensely. The purpose of the current review is to explore the utility of gamification apps to enhance the active engagement of medical students. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was carried out in the PubMed search engine and a total of five articles were selected based on their suitability with the current review objectives. Keywords used in the search include gamification and medical education. Gamification refers to the employment of elements of games in nongame contexts with an intention to engage users and making them to solve the given problems. It promotes the delivery of information in a learner-centered way and meets the requirement of individual students, especially by targeting those domains in which they are interested. These games are designed in such a way that it simulates problems of the real world, wherein students have to apply their knowledge into practice and simultaneously learn the clinical decision-making skills. In conclusion, gamification and the use of technology should be acknowledged as the new aspects of curriculum delivery and all efforts should be taken to incorporate them as one of the components of medical teaching and assessment in the near future across all medical institutions.