The potential use of a serious game to help patients learn about post-operative pain management - An evaluation study.

Aims To describe the evaluation of a serious computer game designed for patients to learn about post-operative pain management. Methods This was a usability and evaluation study. The sample consisted of 20 people, recruited from the public. The computer game was developed by an interdisciplinary team. In the game, the player controls the actions of a virtual human character who has been discharged home after surgery. The player needs to make decisions about the character's daily activities, such as common household tasks and self-care, including pain management. The player observes how his decisions influence the character's recovery. The usability and efficacy of the game were evaluated in one session with semi-structured interviews and questionnaires on knowledge acquisition and usability. The playing session was video recorded to assess if technical problems arose and how often the player needed assistance. Results The mean age of participants was 48 years (SD = 14), 11 were women. Participants described the usability of the game as high (range 3-5 on a 0-5 scale) and expressed satisfaction with this novel method of learning, despite some technological challenges. Ease of use was confirmed by observation. Knowledge of pain medications and pain management strategies improved after playing the game. The number of correct answers increased from 54%, before playing, to 71% after playing the game (p = 0.001). Conclusions Playing an educational computer came has the potential to improve knowledge regarding post-operative pain management. The game was well received by participants. Serious computer games can be a useful tool in enhancing patient education. The game needs to be tested with surgical patients.