Movement Disorders Virtual Fellowship Training in Times of Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Single-Center Experience

Abstract

Objective: To describe the impact a global pandemic has had on a teaching movement disorders program, as well as its subsequent transition to telemedicine. Methods: In the midst of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, we transitioned our movement disorders fellowship program virtually over the course of a few days.Here we describe the parameters used for the telemedicine fellow supervised clinic visit over the course of 2 months. Fellow's input was obtained from a brief survey at the end of the experience. Faculty's experience was collected upon independent faculty discussions. We also summarize the challenges and advantages of this teaching experience and its downsides. Results: A total of 130 patients (102 follow-up and 28 new patients) were seen over 22 clinic days with any of our 3 fellows being supervised by 1 of the 6 attending physicians. The main challenges were related to technical difficulties and lack of portions of the examination such as tone, reflexes, and sensory testing. The main advantages were related to increased patient access and a decrease in scheduling barriers. The overall satisfaction with the experience of the fellows was positive (69%). Conclusions: This sample shows the feasibility (despite lack of prior experience) of virtual clinical supervision of movement disorders fellows for follow-up and new complex patient encounters. This novel method for movement disorders training has implications for training locally, nationally, and internationally. Limitations and possible future directions such as the inclusion of nonsynchronous recordings and devices for tone and balance testing are also discussed.

Fellowship training: a collateral damage of Covid-19 pandemic

“…The pandemic has promoted adaptations resulting in the improvement of the fast-evolving field of telehealth. 6 COVID-19 vaccine roll-out will probably result in a partial normalization of in-office visits, but lessons regarding fellow training and how their competencies need to be expanded should not be forgotten.…”

Telemedicine in the Management of Parkinson’s Disease: Achievements, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

“…Feasibility was acceptable with 100% and 85.7% of the videoconferences completed in Argentina and Cameroon, respectively, and medical knowledge improved similarly in both countries. Likewise, the conduction of fellow and neurology resident training programs, locally, nationally, and internationally, was possible with the supervision of virtual clinical visits of patients carrying movement disorders [ 57 , 58 ]. Overall, these programs showed a statistically significant improvement in the learning process and the comfort of patients.…”