Distance Learning Improves Attainment of Professional Milestones in the Early Years of Surgical Training

Abstract

A surgical sciences e-learning program designed to support academic development of trainees in the early years of surgical training was associated with improved success in surgical trainees' professional examination, positive student feedback, and significant academic attainment.

Development of an international online learning platform for hepatopancreatobiliary surgical training: a needs assessment

“…This feedback was provided to the North American HPB Fellowship Directors, who agreed to support a protocol of mandatory participation in the discussions and curriculum on myHPB according to a minimum number of posts annually in order to achieve AHPBA HPB certification at the conclusion of training. This is consistent with the practices of the effective ESSQ programme developed in Edinburgh …”

“…These programmes have jointly recruited over 600 surgical trainees from 48 countries in a 7‐year period. These programmes include virtual clinical scenarios, multiple‐choice questions, and required discussion board participation in discussions that are maintained by experts and driven by evidence‐based medicine . Ultimately, students submit a research dissertation and are eligible to obtain a postgraduate degree .…”

“…These programmes include virtual clinical scenarios, multiple‐choice questions, and required discussion board participation in discussions that are maintained by experts and driven by evidence‐based medicine . Ultimately, students submit a research dissertation and are eligible to obtain a postgraduate degree . The UK model attributes some of its success to course design, which adheres to the well‐established principles of successful online learning in that the virtual learning environment is specifically tailored to the needs of the institution and the students, rather than representing an ‘off‐the‐shelf’ learning environment .…”

“…9 Ultimately, students submit a research dissertation and are eligible to obtain a postgraduate degree. 9 The UK model attributes some of its success to course design, which adheres to the well-established principles of successful online learning in that the virtual learning environment is specifically tailored to the needs of the institution and the students, rather than representing an 'off-the-shelf ' learning environment. 10 Moreover, the students have clearly defined goals and objectives and are provided with a sense of community and connectivity that can amplify the learning experience.…”

Distance education methods are useful for delivering education to palliative caregivers: A single-arm trial of an education package (PalliativE Caregivers Education Package)

“…3,4 While it is recognised that accessible, brief and easily delivered education needs to be available, 5 a substantial gap remains around determining how highquality relevant information can be delivered at a national level, using educational methods which are acceptable to caregivers in palliative care. Although distance learning is used widely in health care professional education, [6][7][8] it has not been widely explored for caregivers, despite some early results in the dementia field 9,10 and palliative care [11][12][13][14] which offer promising results. Distance learning approaches address inequities created through the provision of support which requires physical attendance at a time/location determined by the palliative care services, and consequently time away from the person receiving palliative care.…”