TY - JOUR
T1 - The shock of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on health professionals’ education
T2 - A pilot qualitative study in Malaysia
AU - Krishnapillai, Ambigga
AU - Lugova, Halyna
AU - Haque, Mainul
AU - Ariaratnam, Suthahar
AU - Aziz, Aznida Firzah Binti Abdul
AU - Maziz, Mohammad Nazmul Hasan
AU - Patil, Sapna Shridhar
AU - Daher, Aqil M.
AU - Ali, Suhaila Muhammad
AU - Rahman, Nor Azlina A.
AU - Rahman, Nor Iza A.
AU - Chowdhury, Kona
AU - Sharma, Paras
AU - Etando, Ayukafangha
AU - Kumar, Santosh
AU - Abdullah, Adnan
AU - Shahwan, Moyad
AU - Godman, Brian
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Ambigga Krishnapillai et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Various measures were introduced globally to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, social distancing, and closure of educational establishments. Implementing these measures resulted in appreciable changes to health professions’ education (HPE) with concerns regarding the level of preparedness among faculty members and students towards e-learning, including laboratory, clinical, and other forms of hands-on training. In addition, the affordability of devices and Internet bundles arose, especially among students in low and middle-income countries. A pilot qualitative study was conducted in Malaysia to ascertain critical challenges and how higher learning establishments addressed them. The study was undertaken among 10 purposely selected educators in both public and private universities in Malaysia using an established questionnaire to ascertain critical challenges and responses. The main issues included unfamiliarity with e-learning approaches and inadequate availability of devices and Internet bundles among students. Furthermore, the study revealed a lack of interaction between faculty members and students, concerns with conducting practicals and clinical examinations, and mental distress among faculty members. Measures introduced to address concerns included supporting digital needs through the provision of software, devices, and Internet bundles, enhanced training of educators in e-learning approaches, providing clinical case banks and curated patient data, and establishing clear policies and procedures for classroom and clinical teaching. Psychological support, including stress management, was also provided. The challenges and lessons learned in Malaysia regarding HPE during the pandemic were similar to other countries with hybrid learning here to stay.
AB - Various measures were introduced globally to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, social distancing, and closure of educational establishments. Implementing these measures resulted in appreciable changes to health professions’ education (HPE) with concerns regarding the level of preparedness among faculty members and students towards e-learning, including laboratory, clinical, and other forms of hands-on training. In addition, the affordability of devices and Internet bundles arose, especially among students in low and middle-income countries. A pilot qualitative study was conducted in Malaysia to ascertain critical challenges and how higher learning establishments addressed them. The study was undertaken among 10 purposely selected educators in both public and private universities in Malaysia using an established questionnaire to ascertain critical challenges and responses. The main issues included unfamiliarity with e-learning approaches and inadequate availability of devices and Internet bundles among students. Furthermore, the study revealed a lack of interaction between faculty members and students, concerns with conducting practicals and clinical examinations, and mental distress among faculty members. Measures introduced to address concerns included supporting digital needs through the provision of software, devices, and Internet bundles, enhanced training of educators in e-learning approaches, providing clinical case banks and curated patient data, and establishing clear policies and procedures for classroom and clinical teaching. Psychological support, including stress management, was also provided. The challenges and lessons learned in Malaysia regarding HPE during the pandemic were similar to other countries with hybrid learning here to stay.
KW - 2019 novel coronavirus
KW - Consequence
KW - Experimental trial
KW - Feasibility study
KW - Healthcare provider
KW - Malaysia
KW - Pandemic
KW - Pedagogy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85140010450&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.7324/JAPS.2022.121018
DO - 10.7324/JAPS.2022.121018
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85140010450
SN - 2231-3354
VL - 12
SP - 161
EP - 171
JO - Journal of Applied Pharmaceutical Science
JF - Journal of Applied Pharmaceutical Science
IS - 10
ER -