With teens spending more time in front of screens than ever before, video games are emerging as a powerful way to teach important life lessons.
Dr. Allie Hurst, assistant professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, and Olufunmilola Abraham of the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy are tapping into this trend to address a critical issue: opioid misuse among teens.
Hurst will serve as the site principal investigator for a study testing MedSMA℞T Mobile, a digital game designed to educate young patients and their families on opioid safety. Supported by a $1.9 million grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the study will launch the mobile gaming app into UW Health-affiliated emergency departments in Wisconsin and northern Illinois but has the potential to expand nationwide.
“Because emergency departments treat serious injuries and illnesses, they are primary locations where doctors may prescribe acute pain management medications to young adults and teens,” Hurst said.
The study builds on a 2022 pilot project led by Abraham and Hurst that tested the MedSMA℞T Families game on laptops in the pediatric emergency department at UW Health. This next phase introduces a mobile version of the game (MedSMA℞T Mobile) that is easier for teens to access and can be used in community settings with limited research support.
Abraham, the study’s principal investigator and chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice & Science at the University of Kentucky, developed the initial version of MedSMA℞T Families at UW–Madison. Her expertise in game-based learning has been crucial in designing the mobile version. “We’ve seen how effective gaming can be in teaching young people about health issues,” she said. “Through the MedSMA℞T Mobile game, we’re making learning fun while helping families discuss the dangers of opioid misuse and safe use of these medicines.”
Opioid misuse remains a public health crisis in the U.S., with overdose deaths on the rise, particularly among teens. Adolescents who receive opioid prescriptions for injuries are at high risk of misuse, making the emergency department a strategic location for intervention. MedSMA℞T Mobile addresses this by teaching teens and their families about safe opioid use and disposal through interactive game play.
The game presents real-life scenarios that help players understand the importance of following prescription guidelines, recognizing signs of misuse, and learning proper disposal methods. Designed with relatable characters and social situations, MedSMA℞T Mobile engages teens in ways that traditional education methods often don’t.
“We know teens and young adults spend a lot of time on their phones,” Hurst said. “This game meets them where they are, in a very vulnerable place, which gives us a chance to make a positive and lasting impact.”
While the original pilot study focused on patients seen at UW Health’s pediatric emergency department in Madison—part of a large academic medical center with ample research capacity and staffing—this new phase includes additional community hospitals in northern Illinois and Wisconsin. Transitioning to a mobile platform means that the tool can be tested in hospitals with fewer resources to assess how the game works in environments without direct research support.
“One of the most exciting parts of this phase is seeing how MedSMA℞T Mobile performs in these community emergency departments,” Hurst said. “We want to know if it can be easily adopted in settings where our research team isn’t directly involved, which would increase the number of places it could potentially be used nationwide.”
The study will assess the MedSMA℞T Mobile game’s educational outcomes, track behavior changes around opioid safety, and evaluate its integration into busy emergency departments. The research team aims to make the game a valuable tool in public health efforts to combat opioid misuse.
With opioid addiction continuing to affect communities, particularly in underserved areas, MedSMA℞T Mobile offers a novel approach to prevention.
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This project is supported by a grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (R18HS030202-01) through the University of Kentucky Research Foundation.