Current status and future prospects for oral care education in Bachelor of Nursing curriculums: A Japanese cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: This study sought to investigate the current status and faculty members' perceptions of oral care education in Bachelor of Nursing curriculums in Japan. METHOD: Data were gathered through a questionnaire survey of 196 participants, who were faculty members in charge of oral care education in the basic, adult, gerontological, and home nursing fields, from 295 nursing schools that offered Bachelor degrees in nursing across Japan. RESULTS: The quantitative data showed that 38.5% of the participants worked for less than 5 years as oral care educators, only 15.5% taught oral care in perioperative wards, only 62.2% used an oral care training simulator, and less than 30% believed that training in the prevention of oral diseases should be enhanced. From the descriptive responses, this study identified such problems as the inability of students to perform student-on-student and patient-based oral care training owing to the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission, and the lack of teaching materials, time, and human resources, and cooperation with other nursing fields and health professionals. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed several problems in oral care education in the Bachelor of Nursing curriculums in Japan. To tackle these challenges, this study suggests the development of an interdisciplinary course that unifies oral care education in nursing fields, in order to promote collaborative oral care education and to improve nursing students' knowledge and skills of oral care.

A cross sectional study on the online teaching strategies of gross anatomy and histology during the COVID-19 pandemic periods

The subsequent implementation of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic has forced universities to keep the students away from the institutions. The aim of the study was to conduct a survey through medical colleges among anatomy teachers along with an exploration of optimization of the transitions which can assist to improve the quality of online teaching. The objectives were to identify the virtual learning interventions implemented by different medical colleges in India during Covid-19 pandemic periods, and to identify suitable technological intervention for teaching anatomy from the educator's point of view. A cross sectional study was conducted by convenience sampling method. A differential rating scale questionnaire study was conducted. A hundred participants from the department of anatomy of 100 medical colleges with a minimum of 3 years of experience in teaching in the field were the samples. Faculty other than anatomy department of medical colleges was excluded. Consents were taken from each participant and participant information was shared by email. The teachers were from both from Government and from Private Institutions. For most teachers, the biggest difficulty in implementing online teaching during the initial year of online teaching at 2020 was the unstable online teaching environments, platforms and tools (47%), followed by their unfamiliarity with online teaching techniques, platforms and tools (26%). Further, 17% had problems due to insufficient training and management of online teaching from college. This study assists to improve the design and quality of online teaching by suggesting for the change in infrastructure by arranging online portal handson coaching for rendering online education. Copyright © 2022 Sociedad Anatomica Espanola. All rights reserved.

A Nationwide Study on the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Volume of Spine Surgery in South Korea.

OBJECTIVE: In March 2020, World Health Organization declared a global pandemic caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The disease caused by this virus is called COVID-19. Due to its high contagiousness, many changes have occurred in overall areas of our daily life including hospital use by patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on volume of spine surgery in South Korea using the National Health Insurance database and compare it with the volume of a homologous period before the pandemic. METHODS: Data of related to spine surgery from January 2019 to April 2021 were obtained from the National Health Insurance and Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service database. Primary outcomes were total number of patients, rate of patients per 100000 population, and total number of procedures. The number of patients by hospital size was also analyzed. RESULTS: COVID-19 outbreaks occurred in South Korea in March, August, and December of 2020. Compared to the previous year, the total number of patients who underwent spinal surgery showed a decrease for 2-3 months after the first and second outbreaks. However, it showed an increasing trend after the third outbreak. The same pattern was observed in terms of the ratio of the number of patients per 100000 population. Between 2019 and 2021, the mean number of spine surgeries per month tended to increase. Mean annual medical expenses increased over the years (p=0.001). When the number of spine surgeries was analyzed by hospital size, proportion of tertiary general hospital in 2021 increased compared to those in 2019 and 2020 (vs. 2019, p=0.012; vs. 2020, p=0.016). The proportion of general hospital was significantly decreased in 2020 compared to that in 2019 (p=0.037). CONCLUSION: After the COVID-19 outbreak, patients tended to postpone spinal surgery temporarily. The number of spinal surgeries decreased for 2-3 months after the first and second outbreaks. However, as the ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic at the hospital and society-wide level gradually increased, the number of spine surgeries did not decrease after the third outbreak in December 2020. In addition, the annual number of spine surgeries continued to increase. However, it should be noted that patients tend to be increasingly concentrated in tertiary hospitals for spinal surgery.

Impact of COVID-19 on the Volume of Acute Stroke Admissions: A Nationwide Survey in Japan.

This study aimed to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the volumes of annual stroke admissions compared with those before the pandemic in Japan. We conducted an observational, retrospective nationwide survey across 542 primary stroke centers in Japan. The annual admission volumes for acute stroke within 7 days from onset between 2019 as the pre-pandemic period and 2020 as the pandemic period were compared as a whole and separately by months during which the epidemic was serious and prefectures of high numbers of infected persons. The number of stroke patients declined from 182,660 in 2019 to 178,083 in 2020, with a reduction rate of 2.51% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.58%-2.44%). The reduction rates were 1.92% (95% CI, 1.85%-2.00%; 127,979-125,522) for ischemic stroke, 3.88% (95% CI, 3.70%-4.07%, 41,906-40,278) for intracerebral hemorrhage, and 4.58% (95% CI, 4.23%-4.95%; 13,020-12,424) for subarachnoid hemorrhage. The admission volume declined by 5.60% (95% CI, 5.46%-5.74%) during the 7 months of 2020 when the epidemic was serious, whereas it increased in the remaining 5 months (2.01%; 95% CI, 1.91%-2.11%). The annual decline in the admission volume was predominant in the five prefectures with the largest numbers of infected people per million population (4.72%; 95% CI, 4.53%-4.92%). In conclusion, the acute stroke admission volume declined by 2.51% in 2020 relative to 2019 in Japan, especially during the months of high infection, and in highly infected prefectures. Overwhelmed healthcare systems and infection control practices may have been associated with the decline in the stroke admission volume during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Leaders' perspectives and actions to manage challenges in medical education presented by the COVID-19 pandemic: a nationwide survey of Japanese medical colleges.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused medical colleges worldwide to suspend in-person classes and clinical clerkships. This fluid situation urgently required educators and learners to make a paradigm shift from traditional medical education. However, descriptions of how leaders manage policy decisions, especially considering cultural contexts, are limited. This study explores how the deans of medical colleges in Japan addressed the situations in which face-to-face contact is difficult and interacted with various stakeholders during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: The study employed a nationwide online survey by sending individual e-mails to the director of medical education at each of the 82 medical colleges in Japan. Responses were collected between May 26 and June 12, 2020 from the deans or directors of medical education. The survey questions were developed based on a literature review and consultations with international research collaborators. The survey asked what difficulties and opportunities were encountered through curriculum adjustments during the COVID-19 pandemic and what lessons could be shared with medical educators worldwide. Survey responses were analyzed using thematic analysis. The themes were categorized by stakeholder and then analyzed using the domains of sensemaking theory. RESULTS: A total of 48 medical colleges in Japan completed the survey, yielding a response rate of 58.5%. The levels of participation in the study were 42.9%, 77.8%, and 74.2% among national, public, and private medical colleges, respectively, with responses from public and private medical colleges tending to be higher than those from national medical colleges. Japanese deans' decisions for actions in adapting to COVID-19 involve perceiving cues from multiple stakeholder groups, including medical students, parents of medical students, medical faculties, and government officials. Thematic analysis of survey data reveals that Japanese deans' actions in adapting to COVID-19 reflect characteristics of Japanese culture, with Japanese deans tending to emphasize in-depth introspection and collaboration with diverse stakeholders. CONCLUSIONS: Despite a lack of clear national guidelines for decision making, Japanese deans adapted to COVID-19 challenges by learning from one another and seeking the perspectives of a diverse group of stakeholders, aligned with local cultural context. Their approach offers important lessons for global medical educators.

Reproductive medical providers' behaviors, considerations, and plans for fertility treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan: A nationwide web-based survey.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted reproductive medical providers' behaviors and considerations, including their concerns regarding the necessity of fertility treatments. METHODS: A web-based questionnaire was distributed to Japan Society of Fertilization and Implantation (JSFI) members from May 18 through May 31, 2020 to survey their professional behaviors and concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: Most survey participants reported a decrease in the number of patients and a decrease in their workload. Most also believe that the use of fertility treatments will return to the pre-pandemic levels after the COVID-19 pandemic ends. Additionally, more than half of the participants reported that they consider fertility treatment neither necessary nor unnecessary during the COVID-19 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: At the institute where reproductive medical providers worked in Japan, the number of outpatients and the working time tended to decrease during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, amid fears of infection during the COVID-19 pandemic, the reproductive medical providers working at fertility institutes in Japan have remained engaged in their work with a sense of mission and hope.

A nationwide survey of online teaching strategies in dental education in China.

OBJECTIVES: Due to the time and cost effectiveness, online teaching has played a significant role in the provision of education and has been a well-accepted strategy for higher education in the world. The aim of this study was to survey the current online undergraduate education status in dental medicine in mainland China during the critical stage of the COVID-19 outbreak, as well to provide a better understanding of practicing this learning strategy for the improvement and development of dental education. METHODS: For the cross-sectional survey, recruitment emails regarding to the implementation of online education were sent to 42 dental colleges and universities in mainland China between March and April 2020. RESULTS: Ninety-seven percent of the respondents have opened online courses during COVID-19 pandemic in China, 74% of which chose live broadcast as the major teaching way. As compared with theoretical courses, fewer specialized practical curriculums were set up online with a lower satisfaction from students in most dental schools. For the general evaluation of online learning from students of different dental schools, the "online learning content" received the highest support, while the "interaction between teachers and students" showed the lowest satisfaction. Most schools reported that the difficulty in assurance of students' learning motivation was the main problem in online education. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate the necessity and efficacy of the overall online teaching for dental education during the epidemic that can be further improved with the education model and pedagogical means to boost the informationization of dental education for future reference.