Effectiveness of Remote Didactic Learning for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residents Joshua D. Segal, D.D.S., M.D.; Monika Patel, D.D.S.
ABSTRACT The novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has had a profound effect upon the clinical and didactic learning of oral and maxillofacial surgery residents. Restrictions on the assembly of residents for teaching sessions significantly limited the residents’ exposure to interactive didactic material. The Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Northwell Health/Long Island Jewish Medical Center responded to this educational deficit by establishing a grassroots cooperative lecture series among over 20 oral and maxillofacial residency programs. Following the lecture series, in order to evaluate the effectiveness of this strategy, an electronic survey was sent to participants. Questions focused on
act, and many specialties have transitioned to telehealth models to accommodate “social distancing” guidelines put in place by the World Health Organization and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.[1,2]This has inevitably affected our ability to gather as residents for didactic lectures and discussions, and a transition has taken place to a virtual learning model. Within our oral and maxillofacial surgery community, academic programs and associations have been taking the initiative to develop educational content for trainees and practitioners. The Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Northwell Health/ Long Island Jewish Medical Center established a lecture series with almost 400 participants. A survey was subsequently distributed to assess the effectiveness of this learning environment. Previous research has suggested that e-learning can have a positive effect on knowledge acquisition across a wide range of learners related to health professions,[3] and the evaluation of the effectiveness of virtual learning is important for learners and educators alike.
the subjective assessment of learning outcomes, comparing online lectures to those in a traditional setting. The report presented here summarizes the overall responses (19.3%) received from participants. The novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has dramatically changed the way in which many facets of healthcare institutions function. It has necessitated a paradigm shift in the way we inter-
18 APRIL 2021 The New York State Dental Journal ●
Methods An electronic survey, approved by the Institutional Review Board of Northwell Health, was launched between June 2020 and July 2020 among oral and maxillofacial surgery residents and attendings who were present at a weekly virtual lecture series organized by the Northwell Health/Long Island Jewish Medical Center residency program. The survey was performed using the Survey Monkey online platform. A link to the anonymous survey, along with
