Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of students towards e-learning during the lock down. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Liaquat College of Medicine and Dentistry. MBBS and BDS students of all levels participated in the study with a sample size calculated as 377. A self-administered questionnaire was developed. After validation from the Medical Education Experts, pilot test was run on 30 participants before the administration of the questionnaire. The questionnaire was emailed to the participants for data collection. Reliability of the questionnaire was determined. Independent T-test was applied for determining the perceptions of students towards e-learning. Frequencies and percentages were also computed for demographics. Results: Total 382 responses were received.137 males and 245 females participated in the study. 0.851 was calculated as Cronbach’s alpha of the questionnaire. Overall, 77% students have negative perceptions towards e-learning. 76% of the students use mobile device for their e-learning. Conclusion: Students did not prefer e-teaching over face-to-face teaching during the lock down situation. Administration and faculty members should take necessary measures for improving e-teaching for better learning during lock down. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.COVID19-S4.2766 How to cite this:Abbasi S, Ayoob T, Malik A, Memon SI. Perceptions of students regarding E-learning during Covid-19 at a private medical college. Pak J Med Sci. 2020;36(COVID19-S4):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.COVID19-S4.2766 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Objective: To compare the predominant relationship/attachment styles of final year female medical students of a Pakistani medical college with their intended primary care and non-primary care post-graduate speciality preferences. Study Design: Cross-sectional comparative study. Place and Duration of Study: Sir Syed College of Medical Sciences for Girls, Karachi, from Feb to Apr 2019. Methodology: Final year MBBS students were included in the study. Students were asked to complete a validated relationship scales questionnaire to determine the dominant relationship/attachment style. Students were also asked to identify their intended first choice for post-graduate specialization from a list of 28 primary care and non-primary care post-graduate specialities. Results: Out of 113 female students, 48 (43%) were found to have a predominantly dismissing relationship style (among four variants of relationship styles). Out of 95 (84%) students opted for a non-primary care speciality for pursuing post-graduation, out of which 37 (33%) students chose Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Comparison of participant’s relationship styles with postgraduate speciality showed no significant difference (p-value=0.40). Conclusion: Medical students should be provided adequate and timely exposure to various specialities available for postgraduation (primary and non-primary care specialities) and should be guided appropriately to help them make informed career choices.

Objective: To assess the attitude of dental students for learning communication skills at undergraduate level.Methods: A research based on cross-sectional comparative study design was conducted on final year BDS students at two reknowned dental colleges of Karachi naming Fatima Jinnah Dental College and Liaquat College of Medicine and Dentistry. Approval was taken from the principals of both dental colleges as well as from Ethical Review Board (ERB). The duration of the study took place from March-May 20. Inclusion were the final year dental students from both colleges.A validated questionnaire 'Communication Skills Attitudes Scale (CSAS)' was used for data collection. SPSS version 23 was used to analyse data. Mean and SD was computed for numeric variables and frequency and percentage was computed for categorical variables. Independent t-test was used to assess the significant difference with respect to gender.Results: 144 students participated in the study. Out of which 42 (28.97%) were males and 103 females (71.03%). The mean age of the students was 21.91 ± 1.03 years. The mean and standard deviation of the positive attitude score was 3.84 and 0.59 whereas of negative attitude score was 2.55 and 0.43. Both male and females had a high score of positive attitudes as compared to negative attitude similarly females had a high score of positive attitudes as compared to negative attitudes. There were no statistically significant differences observed in positive and negative attitudes of males and females (p>0.05).Conclusion: Both male and female students showed a positive attitude towards learning effective communication skills. Therefore, it has become a dire need for the students to acquire communication skills for improving doctor-patient relations and improving dental healthcare. Policy makers should consider including communication skills in the curriculum as part of formal education.