Application of online case-based learning in the teaching of clinical anesthesia for residents during the COVID-19 epidemic

Abstract

Objective COVID-19 prevention and control demand a reduction in crowd gathering, which has a significant impact on traditional teaching and offline case-based learning (CBL). In order to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on clinical teaching, we aimed to compare the effects of an online CBL with traditional teaching model on learning outcomes of anesthesia residents. Methods Residents rotated in the Department of Anesthesiology in Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital from January 2020 to February 2021 were included in Group W (n = 19), which implemented the W-CBL teaching model. The performance of residents was evaluated with theory test and 2 survey questionnaires (A and B) were conducted after 1 month of rotating. All 20 residents rotating in the Department of Anesthesiology at our hospital from January 2018 to December 2019 were included in Group C, which implemented the traditional teaching model. Their examination results were acquired through the teaching files and survey questionnaire (A) were administered through WeChat. Results During the 1-month rotation, a total of 10 cases were discussed in Group W. The average score for theory test was higher in Group W than that in Group C (84.57 ± 4.87 vs. 79.35 ± 3.70, P = 0.001). The satisfaction rate was also in favor of Group W regarding to clinical thinking, communication skills, learning interest and self-learning ability (P < 0.05). Conclusions Online CBL based on WeChat platform is an effective and acceptable teaching strategy in comparison to lecture-based learning (LBL) among residents embarking on clinical anesthesia courses.

The Development and Use of a Novel Clinical Vignette as a Blended Learning Adjunct for Simulation-Based Learning During and Beyond COVID

“…Additionally, integration into Blackboard and having to motivate their findings helped integrate other areas of knowledge such as anatomy and physiology. This links well into the aims of CBL which are to discourage memorisation of theoretical knowledge and rather to encourage the practical application and integration of theoretical knowledge (Duan et al, 2021). The results also link into the findings by Whitfield et al (2021) that students using blended learning have more time to think about and grasp complex clinical concepts than they would have, had they only had in-class practical interactions and that they were able to build greater critical thinking and reasoning skills.…”

“…CBL and vignettes have been suggested as substitutes for isolated case studies and are often used in healthcare education with the aim of preparing students for clinical practice by using realistic clinical scenarios (McLean, 2016). CBL takes clinical cases and uses these as a background to encourage students to think actively as medical experts (Duan, Li, Wang, Gao & Zhang, 2021). In addition, CBL vignettes should address present learning objectives, should be logical in flow and should be student-centred in design (Ma, Hubal & McLaughlin, 2020).…”

Differences in perception of online anesthesiology between Thai medical students and teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…However, the study on anesthesia case-based online learning reported higher satisfaction than conventional case-based learning [6].…”

“…Previous studies have shown that online learning has limitations in clinical and technical skill training [5]. Online case-based learning in the teaching of clinical anesthesia reported skill training limitations and showed a negative effect on students' attitudes [6].…”

“…While education in many Asian countries tends to be teacher-centered and focused on rote learning and didactic lecture, students require self-study, self-motivation, and a flipped classroom model in online learning [6][7][8][9]. A previous study in an Asian country found that 89% of medical students reported being less satisfied with online learning [10].…”