The benefits of virtual learning webinars to both low- and high-income countries

Area of Science:

• Global Health
• Medical Education
• Urology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic significantly altered international partnerships in healthcare, impacting medical education and surgical training.
• Urolink, representing the British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS), experienced disruptions to its traditional face-to-face training model.

Purpose of the Study:

• To adapt and deliver urology education between high-income (UK) and low-middle-income (Zambia) countries during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• To assess the accessibility and educational acceptability of a virtual learning platform for urology trainees.

Main Methods:

• Development and implementation of a virtual online webinar package for urology trainees.
• Content delivery and collaboration between urologists in Lusaka, Zambia, and various UK centers.
• Utilizing live webinars and archived recordings for educational purposes.

Main Results:

• The virtual webinar program was successfully delivered, providing curricular-based education to trainees in both the UK and Zambia.
• The program proved to be accessible and educationally acceptable to participants.
• The initiative fostered intercontinental relationships among young urologists, offering diverse perspectives on healthcare delivery at minimal cost.

Conclusions:

• Virtual urology education is a viable and effective model for international collaboration, even post-pandemic.
• The established online platform offers a durable and widely applicable educational mechanism for global urology training.
• This approach enhances cross-cultural understanding and knowledge exchange in surgical education.