Traditional learning meets adaptive learning: the present and future of education in nonoperating room anesthesia.

Clinical Snapshot

Key Findings

• P Value: Not reported

• Effect Size: Not applicable — no quantitative effect size reported

• Primary Outcome: Conceptual synthesis of traditional versus adaptive learning modalities in NORA continuing education; no primary quantitative outcome reported

• Nnt Or Sensitivity: Not applicable — narrative review with no diagnostic, therapeutic, or prognostic quantitative analysis

• Confidence Interval: Not reported

Clinical Application

Adoption of adaptive learning platforms and virtual reality simulation in NORA education is feasible in well-resourced academic centres but faces significant barriers in community and regional settings, including cost, infrastructure requirements, and variable digital literacy among practitioners Australian NORA practice is governed by ANZCA professional documents and the RACGP for procedural sedation in primary care contexts. The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has highlighted NORA as a domain of increasing procedural complexity. Adaptive learning tools discussed in this review are not currently integrated into ANZCA Fellowship or CPD frameworks. The PBS does not fund educational technology directly, and TGA oversight of AI-based clinical decision support tools remains an evolving regulatory area. Australian anaesthetists considering adoption of these modalities should consult ANZCA's CPD program requirements and monitor emerging guidance from the Medical Board of Australia on AI-assisted clinical education. Practising anesthesiologists and NORA providers seeking to structure or update their continuing professional development, particularly those working in gastroenterology suites, interventional radiology, neurointerventional radiology, and electrophysiology laboratories

Abstract

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Nonoperating room anesthesia (NORA) and continuing education in this setting are both in a state of change. Procedures performed outside the operating room, especially those that require nuanced anesthetic care, are becoming increasingly prevalent. Numerous new innovations are transforming care across NORA settings, especially within gastroenterology, interventional and neurointerventional radiology, and electrophysiology. Concurrently, education for NORA providers is rapidly evolving, influenced by technological advancements and artificial intelligence. RECENT FINDINGS: Traditional learning, a mode of education in which each learner receives essentially the same content, is now blending with adaptive learning, a field of precision education in which dynamic educational content is curated for individual learners, timed and paced to their preferences and progress, and coupled with artificial intelligence-generated feedback. The mainstays of traditional education for NORA providers remain relevant: content created by professional societies, podcasts, textbooks, and primary literature. Yet new, artificial intelligence-driven approaches for adaptive learning have entered the scene: clinical decision-making tools, literature review and knowledge mapping assistants, online platforms for precision education, virtual reality, and synthetic patients or avatars. SUMMARY: This article explores the blending of traditional and adaptive educational modalities in NORA continuing education and discusses the implications and obstacles for the future.

References

1. 1.Cormier, N. R., Fernandez-Robles, C., & Hyman, J. B. (2026). Traditional learning meets adaptive learning: the present and future of education in nonoperating room anesthesia. Current Opinion in Anaesthesiology. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACO.0000000000001662