Retinopathy of prematurity training and education: A systematic review

Globally, management of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is limited by a shortage of ophthalmologists who are adequately trained in identifying disease due to limited exposure in ophthalmology residencies and fellowships. We review the current state of ROP education and training and propose strategies to addressing the ROP workforce shortage. Adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a systematic review was performed using PubMed, Embase, and SCOPUS. Terms that were used in the database searches include telemedicine, tele-education, tele-health, retinopathy of prematurity, artificial intelligence, medical education, training. Advancements in tele-education and artificial intelligence have paved the way for increased accessibility to ROP training, particularly in low- and middle-income countries; however, to ensure that these new modalities are effective in clinical practice and training, ophthalmology residency and fellowship programs must implement relevant education and training into their curricula.