JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae is an urgent threat to public health. Novel strategies to mitigate the rise of resistance are emerging. However, to be effective those strategies need to be implemented broadly among the range providers who treat gonorrhea. Gamification is an innovative approach to medical education that has been effective in teaching across disciplines.

Objective:

We aimed to develop and evaluate a gamified education strategy for treatment diversification.

Methods:

We developed a turn-based card game simulating the effect of treatment diversification in overcoming antimicrobial-resistant N. gonorrhoeae. We launched the game at the 2026 STI Prevention Conference. We then piloted the game among a convenience sample of clinicians, researchers, graduate or medical students, and public health practitioners. We administered a pre- and post-game survey using a 5-point Likert scale to capture perceptions and understanding of the emerging treatment diversification tools. We compared collapsed Likert responses (agree or strongly agree vs other) pre- and post-implementation.

Results:

Among 36 participants from 5 countries representing 10 professional disciplines, perception of the importance of drug-resistant gonorrhea increased from 66.7% pre-game to 93.9% post-game. Similarly, self-reported understanding of the tools available for treatment diversification increased from 44.4% to 90.9% (P<0.001) and the proportion of participants who agreed or strongly agreed that diversifying gonorrhea treatment would help overcome drug resistance increased from 75.0% to 93.9% (P=0.058).

Conclusions:

Gamification is a promising technique to support education about emerging tools for treatment diversification in N. gonorrhoeae among a diverse set of learners.