Article # 2
Demonstrating the Value of Medical Education in the Covid-19 Era
Abstract
Introduction
Article # 2
Demonstrating the Value of Medical Education in the Covid-19 Era
Authors :
Ngan Nguyen , Malli Barremkala , Inaya Hajj- Hussein , Douglas Gould
Keywords :
Medical education , Evaluation , Assessment , Virtual education , COVID-19 pandemic
Institution ( All Authors ):
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine , Department of Foundational Medical Studies , Rochester , MI , USA .
Corresponding Author Contact Information :
Inaya Hajj-Hussein Department of Foundational Studies Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine O ' Dowd Hall , Room 452 , 586 Pioneer Drive Rochester , MI 48309 Ph : 248-370-3680 Email : hajjhuss @ oakland . edu
DOI : https :// doi . org / 10.21252 / v135-3g34
Abstract
On March 11 , 2020 , WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic . To protect and maintain the health and safety of its community , medical education institutions were required to restrict personal contact between medical educators and learners while continuing to provide high-quality education and training to the next generation of doctors . This was accomplished by shifting traditional face-to-face classrooms and in-person hospital clerkships to online or virtual formats . As society returns to normal , discussions are ongoing about the best modalities to deliver medical education post-COVID-19 face-to-face , virtual , or both . To justify the adoption and expanded use of any instructional method , including the COVID-19 imposed virtual medical education , educators need to prove its value by demonstrating both its effectiveness and efficiency . This article describes an evidence-based evaluation framework that educators can use to measure and show the value of their education programs to key stakeholders in medical education .
Introduction
March 2020 brought a change unlike the world has seen in a century – a global pandemic . Almost without exception , nations were forced to react to a crisis that few had thought possible , and even fewer were prepared for . Health systems were taxed , economies crippled and much of the planet was under quarantine . The quarantining created isolation , both between and within families , workplaces , social structures , and educational systems .
The traditional face-to-face nature of teaching and learning , so ubiquitous to educational institutions across the globe , was transformed overnight . Primary schools all the way through institutions of higher education had to pivot to online or virtual teaching and learning . The placement of higher education , and in particular those institutions that train future health care professionals ( e . g ., medical , dental , and allied health students ), is unique among educational institutions – differences that are highlighted during times of health crises . For example , medical education ( both at undergraduate and graduate levels ) is competency-based ; graduates are endowed with a level of public trust that they have met a level of competency and acquired a set of skills that will be integrated and applied , in specific and highly regulated