A review of e-learning practices for undergraduate medical education

This paper describes the findings of a literature review conducted on the current usage, lessons, and limitations of e-learning for undergraduate medical education with an emphasis on synchronous delivery in the first 2 years. The review was conducted as part of an initiative to expand the UBC undergraduate medical program in British Columbia, Canada. The 50 e-learning articles included in the review described the deployment of various types of e-learning technology and content in different settings. The seven videoconferencing articles provided product information, health education examples, and innovative approaches. The six review articles provided general guidelines and trends on e-learning in undergraduate medical education in United States and Europe. Overall, while the literature is informative, there are few reported studies that address distributed synchronous learning in these undergraduate programs.