Implementing a challenge-based learning experience in a bioinstrumentation blended course.

BACKGROUND: Bioinstrumentation is essential to biomedical engineering (BME) undergraduate education and professional practice. Several strategies have been suggested to provide BME students with hands-on experiences throughout the curriculum, promoting their preparedness to pursue careers in industry and academia while increasing their learning and engagement. This paper describes the implementation of challenge-based learning (CBL) in an undergraduate bioinstrumentation blended course over the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: The CBL experience was implemented in a third-year bioinstrumentation course from the BME program at Tecnologico de Monterrey. Thirty-nine students enrolled in two sections formed fourteen teams that tackled blended learning activities, including online communication, lab experiments, and in-person CBL activities. Regarding the latter, students were challenged to design, prototype, and test a respiratory or cardiac gating device for radiotherapy. An institutional student opinion survey was used to assess the success of our CBL implementation. RESULTS: Student responses to the end-of-term survey showed that they strongly agreed that this course challenged them to learn new concepts and develop new skills. Furthermore, they rated the student-lecturer interaction very positively despite the blended format. Overall, students assessed their learning experience positively. However, implementing this CBL experience required a substantial time increase in planning, student tutoring, and constant communication between lecturers and the industry partner. CONCLUSION: This work provides an effective instance of CBL for BME education to improve students' learning experience despite decreased resource efficiency. Our claim is supported by the student's performance and the positive feedback from our industrial partner.

Virtual platform to tackle challenges associated with lifelong medical education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, large in-person conferences were mostly cancelled to avoid further disease contagion. Physicians continued to demand changes in form to enable participation in lifelong medical education programs, and the traditional model of in-person conferences needed to be rethought. As such, a regional branch of the national orthopedic association tried to move in-person conferences onto a virtual platform. This study aimed to investigate the effect of transitioning large in-person conferences to a virtual model during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially examining any differences in the attendance of each type of conference. METHODS: In this retrospective observational study, 776 participants in virtual conferences and 575 participants in in-person conferences were analyzed. Institutions were classified based on their location in a central city and two neighboring cities. Affiliated institutions were divided into resident training hospitals, general hospitals, and private clinics. The change in the number and proportion of participants between the virtual conference year and in-person conference year was calculated. RESULTS: The number of virtual conference participants was significantly greater than that of in-person conference participants (P = 0.01). Although the highest number of participants was from central city for both years, the proportion of participants from the two neighboring cities increased. Although the proportion of participants from resident training hospitals and private clinics decreased, the proportion of participants from general hospitals increased. CONCLUSIONS: We implemented a virtual platform to tackle challenges associated with lifelong medical education during the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual platforms can be helpful for organizations that must hold regular lifelong medical education programs for members spread across a wide geographic region.

The next frontier: utilizing eLearning as an innovative approach to advance and sustain interprofessionalism.

The challenges to sustaining interprofessional education (IPE) are numerous and well-documented. These challenges include crowded curricula, scheduling conflicts, lack of physical space, faculty availability, and financial considerations. In turn, IPE is often viewed and treated as an add-on rather than an integral part of healthcare education, leading to sporadic implementation and vulnerability to institutional changes. The concept of eLearning, utilizing electronic technologies for education, emerges as a potential solution to these challenges and could serve as the "next frontier" for IPE. eLearning offers a flexible and scalable platform to deliver IPE, transcending geographical and time constraints. Recent research highlights the benefits of eLearning-based IPE, including enhanced collaboration, learner satisfaction, and clinical application. eLearning allows learners to engage in virtual simulations, reflexive exercises, and collaborative problem-solving, fostering essential skills for future healthcare teams. Interprofessional eLearning courses can seamlessly integrate into existing health professions curricula, catering to busy professionals and students. Most importantly, eLearning promotes consistent and purposeful embedding of interprofessional values and competencies throughout education, training, and professional development. In this Short Report, we utilize the Center for Advancing Interprofessional Practice, Education, and Research (CAIPER) at Arizona State University as a rudimentary "critical instance" case study for advancing and sustaining IPE through eLearning program development. CAIPER exemplifies this approach by constructing engaging evidence-based eLearning IPE courses ranging from examining and applying interprofessionalism in primary care to empathy and humility team-based training. CAIPER's eLearning courses have reached a global audience of over 65,000 learners highlighting the reach, impact, and viability of eLearning for sustainable IPE. Although further research is needed, eLearning presents a promising solution to the systemic challenges of IPE, and by embracing eLearning and embedding interprofessional eLearning courses in existing curricula, institutions can ensure the consistent, accessible, and sustainable delivery of high-quality IPE experiences.

Navigating Challenges and Seizing Opportunities in China's Era of Online Health Education.

The rapid growth of internet users in China presents opportunities for advancing the "Healthy China 2030" initiative through online health education. Platforms like "Shanghai Health Cloud" and "National Health Information Platform" improve health literacy and management, enhancing overall public health. However, challenges such as the digital divide and the spread of unverified health information hinder progress. Addressing these issues requires enhancing digital infrastructure, employing advanced technologies for information validation, and setting high standards for online health services. Integrated efforts from various sectors are essential to maximize the benefits of online health education in China.

Using Collaborative Online International Learning to Support Global Midwifery Education.

BACKGROUND AND LOCAL PROBLEM: The COVID-19 pandemic created a gap in global health learning, requiring creative solutions to bridge the divide. Collaborative online international learning (COIL) is a program between universities located in different geographic areas that aims to build cross-cultural learning and collaboration. INTERVENTION: Faculty members from Uganda and the United States worked collaboratively to plan a 2-session COIL activity for nursing and midwifery students. Twenty-eight students from the United States and Uganda participated in the pilot quality improvement project. MEASURES: Students completed a 13-question REDCap survey measuring satisfaction, time commitment for the activity, and increase in knowledge about differently resourced healthcare systems. Students also were asked to provide qualitative feedback in that survey. RESULTS: Survey results indicate a high level of satisfaction and an increased understanding of a new healthcare system. The majority of students wanted more scheduled activity times, the opportunity to meet face to face, and/or more robust sessions in the future. CONCLUSION: This COIL activity between students in the United States and Uganda was a no-cost activity that provided global health learning opportunities for students during the global pandemic. The COIL model is replicable, adaptable, and customizable for a variety of courses and time spans.

A constructivist-based proposal for bioinformatics teaching practices during lockdown.

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreaks have caused universities all across the globe to close their campuses and forced them to initiate online teaching. This article reviews the pedagogical foundations for developing effective distance education practices, starting from the assumption that promoting autonomous thinking is an essential element to guarantee full citizenship in a democracy and for moral decision-making in situations of rapid change, which has become a pressing need in the context of a pandemic. In addition, the main obstacles related to this new context are identified, and solutions are proposed according to the existing bibliography in learning sciences.

Fostering accessible online education using Galaxy as an e-learning platform.

The COVID-19 pandemic is shifting teaching to an online setting all over the world. The Galaxy framework facilitates the online learning process and makes it accessible by providing a library of high-quality community-curated training materials, enabling easy access to data and tools, and facilitates sharing achievements and progress between students and instructors. By combining Galaxy with robust communication channels, effective instruction can be designed inclusively, regardless of the students' environments.

Solutions, enablers and barriers to online learning in clinical medical education during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: A rapid review.

AIMS: The COVID-19 pandemic has seen a major disruption to undergraduate and postgraduate clinical medical education. The aim of this rapid review was to identify and synthesize published literature relating to the solutions, enablers and barriers to online learning implemented in clinical medical education during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: All articles published before March 2021 in peer-reviewed journals, including MedEdPublish, that described authors' experience of online learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A descriptive analysis of the solutions and a qualitative template analysis of enablers and barriers. RESULTS: 87 articles were identified for inclusion. Face to face teaching was maintained with interactive approaches between learners and/or learners and teachers. Several innovative solutions were identified. The enablers were a readiness and rapid response by institutions, with innovation by teachers. The barriers were the lack of planning and resources, usability problems and limited interactivity between teachers and students. CONCLUSIONS: Important and timely evidence was obtained that can inform future policy, practice and research. The findings highlighted the urgent need to use rapid design and implementation methods with greater explicit descriptions in published articles to ensure applicability to other contexts.

Virtual Rotations During COVID-19: An Opportunity for Enhancing Diversity.

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented unique challenges to medical education. With the lack of in-person away rotations for the 2020-2021 residency application cycle, virtual rotations have surfaced as an alternative. The virtual rotations that the authors participated in allowed for active participation in various resident educational activities such as journal club, grand rounds, and morning conferences. One critical aspect of virtual rotations was the one-on-one meetings with the program leadership. In addition to a virtual tour of the hospital and campus, many programs offered virtual social hours with the residents to converse about the program, the city, and the match process. A few programs even allowed applicants to attend virtually live-streamed surgeries. These rotations offer students, especially those without a corresponding home program, an invaluable opportunity to express their interest in a particular program and gain foundational knowledge about the specialty. Virtual rotations also provide underrepresented minorities and international medical graduates with clinical exposure, mentorship, and networking opportunities, mitigating some of the challenges presented by COVID-19.

COVID-19 Impact on Surgical Resident Education and Coping.

BACKGROUND: Healthcare systems and surgical residency training programs have been significantly affected by the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A shelter-in-place and social distancing mandate went into effect in our county on March 16, 2020, considerably altering clinical and educational operations. Along with the suspension of elective procedures, resident academic curricula transitioned to an entirely virtual platform. We aimed to evaluate the impact of these modifications on surgical training and resident concerns about COVID-19. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We surveyed residents and fellows from all eight surgical specialties at our institution regarding their COVID-19 experiences from March to May 2020. Residents completed the survey via a secure Qualtrics link. A total of 38 questions addressed demographic information and perspectives regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on surgical training, education, and general coping during the pandemic. RESULTS: Of 256 eligible participants across surgical specialties, 146 completed the survey (57.0%). Junior residents comprised 43.6% (n = 61), compared to seniors 37.1% (n = 52) and fellows 19.3% (n = 27). Most participants, 97.9% (n = 138), anticipated being able to complete their academic year on time, and 75.2% (n = 100) perceived virtual learning to be the same as or better than in-person didactic sessions. Participants were most concerned about their ability to have sufficient knowledge and skills to care for patients with COVID-19, and the possibility of exposure to COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: Although COVID-19 impacted residents' overall teaching and clinical volume, residency programs may identify novel virtual opportunities to meet their educational and research milestones during these challenging times.

Educational value of surgical telementoring.

Educating surgeons is a time-consuming process. In addition to theoretical knowledge, the practical tasks of surgical procedures must be mastered. Translation of such knowledge from mentor to mentee may be efficiently done by surgical telementoring (ST). This is a review on surgical telementoring. Recent technological advances have made this tool in surgical education more available and applicable but future applications of ST have to be wisely guided by high-quality trials.

Tele-education assisted mentorship in surgery (TEAMS).

Tele-education assisted mentorship in surgery (TEAMS) is a novel methodology for surgical skills training with remote, hands-on, high-fidelity, and low-cost simulation-based education and one-to-one mentorship with longitudinal assessments. We review the background, methodology, and our experience with implementing TEAMS as an adjunct to traditional methods of surgical education and mentorship.

From telementorship to automation.

The effective integration of robotic technology and surgical tools has played a vital role in advancing surgical care by enabling telepresence in surgery to provide mentorship and surgical care across long distances in the absence of surgeons. This article describes our experiences with advancing surgical education and innovation through telementoring community surgeons, establishing the world's first telerobotic surgical service, and the integration of Artificial Intelligence and robotics to provide remote surgical care and training.

Team training and surgical crisis management.

Team training and crisis management derive their roots from fundamental learning theory and the culture of safety that burgeoned forth from the industrial revolution through the rise of nuclear energy and aviation. The integral nature of telemedicine to many simulation-based activities, whether to bridge distances out of convenience or necessity, continues to be a common theme moving into the next era of surgical safety as newer, more robust technologies become available.

COVID-19 and education: restructuring after the pandemic.

COVID-19 challenges to keep a valuable educational offer with lockdown measures and social distancing are reviewed. Scientific Societies had to think of new alternatives to maintain meetings with conversion to a virtual format and development of online resources, rapidly available and broadly accessible. Other in person activities as face-to-face clinics have been substituted by telemedicine; the same happened with surgical training in theatre, given the suspension of most of the operations. Finally, the need to share and communicate in a continuous evolving scenario, has impacted negatively the integrity of peer review process, not following the normal procedures to ensure scientific integrity and reproducibility in the earliest phases of the pandemic.

Innovating patient care and gynecologic surgery instruction through tele-education.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic prompted the need for rapid, flexible change in the delivery of care, education, and commitment to the well-being of obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) residents. RECENT FINDINGS: Published literature shows multiple models for surge scheduling for residency programs in other specialties. We describe our experience creating a surge schedule for OB/GYN residents that allowed for sufficient coverage of inpatient care while minimizing resident exposure and limited hospital resources, respecting work hour requirements, and plans for coverage due to illness or need for home quarantine. We also report innovative approaches to trainee education through the use of remote-learning technology and gynecologic surgery skills training in absence of normal clinical exposure. SUMMARY: Our approach serves as a model for adapting to unprecedented challenges and offers suggestions for creative transformations of traditional teaching that can be continued beyond the immediate crisis.

Transitioning to a new era: Future directions for staff development during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic created an urgent need for staff development. However, COVID-19 has created many challenges, including the inability to meet in-person, travel restrictions to conferences, overwhelming clinical demands on already overextended faculty members and the increased need to focus on personal health and safety. Although current challenges were immediately met with solutions borne out of an emergency, questions remain on how to identify and sustain best practices and further evolve staff development beyond the immediate crisis. Reviewing the Medical Adaptations series revealed several lessons. Several authors used cognitive apprenticeship to provide scaffolding upon which learners can build skills, knowledge and attitudes. Additionally, moderators were recommended during live educational sessions in order to manage the chat box and engage the audience. Comprehensive IT support was key. A post-session debrief helped deepen understanding and provided a space for peer support and community building. Building a repository for educational materials was recommended. Although we made significant gains in the ability to offer staff development, we must consider potential and unintended consequences and explore how we can use transformative learning theory to capitalize on what we have gained. Utilizing technology can potentially increase access to online learning; however, when not implemented carefully, it can magnify inequities. While providing IT support can serve to mitigate some inequities borne by socioeconomic and generational differences, additional strategies should be implemented to account for English as a second-language learners; those with disabilities who do not have access to adaptive technology; and other marginalized groups who may already feel vulnerable to presenting arguments in oppositions of authority or the majority. Crafting online education experiences to allow for small group, peer-to-peer and social interactions is vital to continued professional and identity development. Now that the urgency has lessened, taking time to ensure what is being offered follows best practices in developing and disseminating quality online education is paramount for broad acceptance.