Live video streaming of neurology ward rounds for undergraduate medical students can replace conventional bedside teaching

Abstract

Background Although teaching ward rounds of the neurology department are considered amongst the most important educational exercises during medical learning in Japan, they are beset by several issues. Patients may find it unpleasant to undergo repeated neurological tests and think that they are being put on display in the presence of several students. However, unfortunately, only the students standing in the front row can closely observe the examination findings. Moreover, students were prohibited contact with patients during the coronavirus pandemic. To overcome these problems, we developed a secure on-premises video conferencing system for conducting live video neurology ward rounds to replace conventional bedside ward rounds Methods We created an on-premises web conferencing system called the Kobe University School of Medicine Web Conference Lecture System (KUMEX), which can be operated only within the hospital, using BigBlueButton, an open-source conferencing application based on Web Real-Time Communication. We attempted to broadcast live videos of the professor’s ward rounds to medical students located in a separate room. Studies were provided questionnaires to evaluate the utility and feasibility of participation in remote ward rounds. Results The students watched a live-streamed video of a professor examining an inpatient on a large screen in the conference room. Each examination technique was explained to the students by another teacher, who could immediately answer questions without worrying about the patient. Characteristic findings, such as plantar reflexes and fasciculations of the tongue, which are usually seen only by the students in the front rows during normal faculty rounds, could be observed under magnification by all students. This program was rated as fair or excellent by 93.7% of students who participated in the remote rounds. Conclusion Live-streaming of neurology ward rounds using an on-premises secure in-house web conferencing system enabled a novel style of clinical neurology education without hampering trust in the patient-physician relationship and could replace conventional bedside teaching.