It is unclear if the transition from traditional, in-person physiology laboratories to virtual alternatives has educational impacts on students. This study used a systematic review to critically evaluate research papers that investigated the effectiveness of virtual physiology laboratories for student learning. Eleven studies, retrieved from the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) and Ovid MEDLINE databases, were selected for inclusion in this review, based on predetermined eligibility criteria. Subsequently, the studies went through a power analysis for potential biases before their results were synthesized and analyzed. This systematic review found that virtual physiology laboratories are effective for students’ learning of concepts. However, it was inconclusive as to whether virtual physiology laboratories are effective for students’ motivation for learning and learning of technical skills. It was found that blended models of virtual laboratories are at least as effective as in-person laboratories for conceptual learning. Overall, this systematic review provides useful insights for educators regarding the educational impacts of implementing virtual laboratories into the physiology curriculum and suggests research models for future evaluation of virtual laboratories.

Background The actual human cost of the pandemic cannot be viewed through the COVID-19 mortality rates alone, especially when the pandemic is widening the existing health disparities among different subpopulations within the same society. In Kuwait, migrant workers were already disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and its unintended consequences. The totality of that effect on mortality is yet to be fully understood. Objective To estimate excess deaths in the pandemic year of 2020 among the Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti migrant populations. Methods We analyzed publicly available retrospective data in Kuwait on total annual mortality historically (from 2005 to 2019) and in 2020. We fitted a quasi-poisson generalized linear model adjusted for yearly trend and nationality to estimate the expected deaths in 2020 in the absence of the pandemic. We calculated excess deaths as the difference between observed and expected mortality for the year of the pandemic in both Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis. Results In the absence of the pandemic, we expected the total mortality in Kuwait to be 6629 (95% CI: 6472 to 6789) deaths. However, the observed total mortality in 2020 was 9975 deaths; about 3346 (3186 to 3503) more deaths above the expected historical trend. Deaths among migrant workers would have been approximately 71.9% (67.8 to 76.0) lower in the absence of the pandemic. On the other hand, deaths among Kuwaitis would have been 32.4% (29.3 to 35.6) lower if the country had not been hit by the pandemic. Conclusion The burden of mortality brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic is substantially higher than what the official tally might suggest. Systematically disadvantaged migrant workers shouldered a larger burden of deaths in the pandemic year. Public health interventions must consider structural and societal determinants that give rise to the health disparities seen among migrant workers.

Background-The actual human cost of the pandemic cannot be viewed through the COVID-19 mortality rates alone. Especially when the pandemic is widening the existing health disparities among different subpopulations within the same society. In Kuwait, migrant workers were already disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and its unintended consequences. Objective-To estimate the excess deaths in the pandemic year of 2020 among the Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaiti migrants. Methods-We analyzed publicly available retrospective data on total annual mortality historically (2005 to 2019) and in 2020. We fitted a quasi-poisson generalized linear model adjusted for yearly trend and nationality to estimate the expected deaths in 2020 in the absence of the pandemic. We calculated excess deaths as the difference between observed and expected mortality for the year of the pandemic in both Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis. Results-In the absence of the pandemic, we expect the total mortality in Kuwait to be 6629 (95% CI: 6472 to 6789) deaths. However, the observed total mortality in 2020 was 9975 deaths; about 3346 (3186 to 3503) more deaths above the historical trend. Deaths among migrant workers would have been approximately 71.9% (67.8 to 76.0) lower in the absence of the pandemic. On the other hand, deaths among Kuwaitis would have been 32.4% (29.3 to 35.6) lower if the country had not had the pandemic. Conclusion-The mortality burden of the COVID-19 pandemic is substantially higher than what the official tally might suggest. Systematically disadvantaged migrant workers shouldered a larger burden of deaths in the pandemic year. Public health interventions must consider structural and societal determinants that give rise to the health disparities seen among migrant workers.