The western journal of emergency medicine
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Emergency medicine residents use simulation training for many reasons, such as gaining experience with critically ill patients and becoming familiar with disease processes. Residents frequently criticize simulation training using current high-fidelity mannequins due to the poor quality of physical exam findings present, such as auscultatory findings, as it may lead them down an alternate diagnostic or therapeutic pathway. Recently wireless remote programmed stethoscopes (simulation stethoscopes) have been developed that allow wireless transmission of any sound to a stethoscope receiver, which improves the fidelity of a physical examination and the simulation case. ⋯ A simulation stethoscope may be a useful adjunct to current emergency medicine simulation-based training. Residents both preferred the use of the simulation stethoscope and perceived physical exam findings to be more realistic, leading to improved fidelity. Potential sources of bias include the small population, narrow scoring range, and the lack of blinding. Further research, focusing on use for resident assessment and clinical significance with a larger population and blinding of graders, is needed.