ways . Such expectations are not set aside during stressful times and during times of health crises , such as COVID-19 , where those standards become more important than ever .
The COVID-19 lockdown measures compelled medical education institutions to convert their traditional face-to-face classrooms , and in-person hospital clerkships to online formats , in order to foster continuity in their curricula . New , creative teaching methods evolved from embracing the rapid and essential advancement in technology , to the quick implementation of the latest online teaching tools to support students in their learning . The unprecedented situation imposed by the pandemic called for unprecedented changes ; didactic lectures , small group / teambased sessions , and clinical skills training events were transformed into virtual experiences . Clerkships incorporated additional components , such as using virtual clinical cases , telemedicine observations , and virtual participation .
Assessments also transitioned to online settings and grading policies were changed to pass / fail in accordance with the Liaison Committee on Medical Education guidelines ( Barzansky & Etzel , 2020 ). From the students ’ perspective , the transition to virtual education presented an opportunity for remote study , which would have been less likely otherwise . Remote learning allows students to explore a variety of open online medical educational resources and utilize those best suited to their personal learning preferences , which was rarely possible pre-COVID-19 . The virtual format also offered flexibility in terms of accessing the materials from anywhere and at any time asynchronously .
The transition to virtual medical education necessitated that both educators and learners acquire new knowledge , skills , and attitudes . Educators needed to be informed about available virtual platforms and IT support facilitating the delivery of course content and assessments . They also needed to know how to prepare and deliver content and assessments using these virtual platforms . Learners , on the other hand , needed to know how to access course content and complete assessments using virtual platforms . Furthermore , they needed to demonstrate the acquisition of relevant knowledge , skills , and attitudes based on the course learning objectives . Several factors influenced decisions regarding which virtual platform ( s ) were selected for content and assessment delivery . These factors included the availability of the virtual platform , the entailed cost , IT support , instructor familiarity with the platform , learner preference , and learning objectives .
As medical education shifts from face-to-face to virtual teaching , multiple questions are raised about the efficacy and the value of virtual medical education , i . e ., Does virtual medical education meet the societal needs and expectations discussed above ? Does it meet the learning needs of medical students and trainees ? Do the benefits of virtual medical education exceed its costs ? Answers to these questions are crucial to guide decisions regarding the use of virtual medical education post-COVID-19 .
The purpose of this paper is to describe best practices for understanding the value of medical education , including the COVID-19 imposed virtual education , and provide a framework that educators can use to demonstrate the value of their medical education programs to stakeholders . Stakeholders , in the context of medical education , are the people and organizations that have a stake in the outcomes of medical education ; in addition to patients , they include those who provide , receive , manage , or pay for medical education . Key stakeholders in medical education include policymakers ( i . e ., members of organizations that decide or influence policies related to medical education ), policy implementers ( i . e ., heads of medical education institutions and curriculum committee members ), course instructors / teachers / facilitators / designers / developers ( i . e ., those responsible for developing and delivering the curricula elements of medical education ), students and trainees , taxpayers and shareholders . Different stakeholders have different needs and expectations ; thus , the value of medical education cannot be defined by a single number or single category of data , but rather by a combination of various forms of data , relevant to different stakeholders . The pre- and post-COVID-19 values of medical education differ in multiple ways - particularly when considering the impact and changes on value to stakeholders .