COVID-19 pandemic is the new era of distance education for surgeons

Abstract

The global novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic necessitated an immediate change in surgical education and cessation of face-to-face education brought about a new era, the era of distance education. Distance education comprises a range of platforms that provide illustrations, case-based learning, procedural skills, and comprehensive course curricula, allowing real-time interactions between users for an immediate exchange of information. On the other hand, for most surgeons and surgical educators, distance education is new and confusing. It can be frustrating when students do not complete an online training session or drop out of a learning module. In this article, the key concepts behind distance education, strategic tools for planning, and content design were explained and easy-to-apply recommendations in light of the current literature were provided. Additionally, the status of distance education in Turkey has been evaluated considering the recent developments in distance surgical education.