Implementing virtual microscopy improves outcomes in a hematology morphology course

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Hematology
• Digital Learning Technologies

Background:

• Distance education (DE) offers expanded access and cost efficiencies but faces challenges in equitable curriculum delivery.
• Preservation of physical slide collections is a concern for educational institutions.
• Digitizing laboratory resources is crucial for modernizing educational delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of virtual microscopy (VM) as the primary instructional method in undergraduate clinical hematology.
• To compare student performance between virtual microscopy and traditional microscopy (TM) in a distance education setting.
• To explore the role of VM in distributed hematology education to meet workforce demands.

Main Methods:

• Randomized controlled trial comparing virtual microscopy (VM) and traditional microscopy (TM) for undergraduate clinical hematology laboratory instruction.
• Two performance sites were utilized with students randomly assigned to either VM or TM groups.
• Digitized slide sets were employed for the virtual microscopy group.

Main Results:

• Students in the virtual microscopy (VM) group demonstrated significantly higher performance compared to the traditional microscopy (TM) group.
• VM proved effective as a primary mode of laboratory instruction.
• The study highlights the potential of digital microscopy in remote learning environments.

Conclusions:

• Virtual microscopy is a highly effective tool for undergraduate clinical hematology education, outperforming traditional methods.
• VM facilitates equitable curriculum delivery in distance education settings.
• This digital approach is poised to play a key role in expanding hematology education and addressing future workforce needs.