Interactive Tele-Education Applied to a Distant Clinical Microbiology Specialization University Course

Abstract

The microbiology laboratory provides a strategic support for infectious disease diagnosis and also alerts the medical community about bacterial resistance to antibiotics. The microbiologists' training is a challenge in Brazil, a country with an extensive territory, a diverse population, and disparity of resource allocation. The aim of this study was to implement an interactive tele-educational course in clinical microbiology to reach distant laboratory workers and to improve their professional skills. The course scientific content was defined according to competences associated, distributed in 560 h, with laboratory practices (knowledge matrix-contextual education). The 11-module course structure comprised 70% distance learning, 22% on campus (integrated modules), and 8% monographs. The group included 7 physicians and 21 microbiologists from 20 different Brazilian cities. The time flexibility and location were the two main reasons for student participation, thus decreasing absences to the workplace, different from the traditional teaching methodologies. The group performance was measured by monthly evaluations, and 1 year postcourse, the researcher visited their workplace. There was significant improvement in microbiological practices performed before compared with after group participation. Therefore, 76.9% of laboratory practices were modified because of the knowledge acquired in the course. Students showed behavioral changes in relation to performance in infection control as well as on the dissemination of their knowledge. This specialization course using distance education did not compromise the quality. This educational methodology represents an alternative to teach clinical microbiology to laboratory workers from remote hospitals, as a nationwide continuing educational strategy.

Comissões de controle de infecção hospitalar no interior do Maranhão, Brasil

“…O Laboratório de Microbiologia configura importante apoio estratégico às atividades CCIH, pois o microbiologista gerencia as etapas do teste de amostra clínica, permitindo a divulgação da informação sobre as resistências bacterianas (13) deste modo é possível atuar no controle da infecção a partir da padronização das rotinas, com aplicação de métodos e parâmetros eficazes.…”

E-learning in clinical microbiology and infectious diseases

“…Interactive tele-medicine can be a suitable method when structured training needs to be given to a group at a distance or in a large area. In Brazil, a specialization course for clinical microbiology was implemented using 70% distance learning to reach remote laboratory workers in order to improve their professional skills [42]. Monthly evaluations and a final visit to their workplace showed a significant improvement in laboratory practices.…”

Medical Doctors’ Offline Computer-Assisted Digital Education: Systematic Review by the Digital Health Education Collaboration

“…It has many advantages over traditional learning, such as outreach, flexibility, and adaptability, as it has the potential to reach a large number of learners regardless of the physical distance; in addition, it caters for the pace and time of the individual participant while reducing the overhead costs of the learning process [11-13]. These features of digital learning could prove it to be a plausible solution to the constraints faced by medical education in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where digital learning has been used effectively to improve existing health services [12] and the diagnostic and therapeutic competencies of the health care providers [2].…”