Application of the METRICS Framework to Build Programs of Healthcare Simulation Research

Summary Statement The evidence base supporting the adoption of simulation in health care has not kept pace with the rapid growth of the field. Although there is a growing body of research in health care simulation, many published studies describe small-scaled, underpowered projects with insufficient methodological rigor to inform our understanding of simulation. This problem is indicative of a larger challenge: the lack of focused, cohesive programs of research designed to advance the science of simulation. The METRICS framework is a model of scholarship that categorizes scholarship into 7 intersecting domains: Metascholarship, Evaluation, Translation, Research, Innovation, Conceptual, and Synthesis. In this article, we aim to explore how the METRICS framework can serve as a roadmap for researchers to develop cohesive simulation research programs. We also describe how the METRICS framework applies to existing institutional and network-based programs of health care simulation research and discuss future implications for the global health care simulation community.