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Student Acceptance of Virtual Bedside Surgical Tutorials During COVID-19: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Aoife Feeley1, Iain Feeley1, Aisling Carroll1
1Midlands Regional Hospital Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland; Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland; University College Dublin, Belfield, Ireland.
The Journal of Surgical Research
|October 29, 2021
Summary
Virtual surgical bedside teaching offers an acceptable alternative to in-person learning, despite some limitations in clinical finding elicitation. This remote method provides convenience and reduces student pressure, complementing traditional medical education.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Surgical Training
- Remote Learning Technologies
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated innovations in medical education delivery.
- Social distancing measures impacted traditional clinical experiences for medical students.
- Novel virtual platforms were developed to maintain surgical patient exposure and interaction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the perceived utility of remote learning as a substitute for in-person bedside teaching in surgery.
- To compare student engagement, satisfaction, and learning outcomes between virtual and in-person surgical bedside teaching.
Main Methods:
- A parallel randomized controlled trial design was employed.
- Participants were assigned to either in-person or virtual surgical bedside teaching.
- Data collection included feedback questionnaires and exit interviews, with subsequent content analysis of transcripts.
Main Results:
- In-person bedside teaching showed significantly greater engagement, satisfaction, involvement, and learning (P < 0.001).
- Virtual learning had limitations in eliciting clinically relevant patient findings.
- Despite limitations, 90% of students reported high satisfaction with virtual learning, noting convenience and reduced pressure.
Conclusions:
- Remote surgical bedside teaching is a viable supplementary method for medical education.
- Virtual platforms offer advantages such as convenience and reduced student fatigue/pressure.
- While in-person interaction remains superior for certain clinical skills, virtual methods are acceptable and beneficial.
