ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic led to the rapid adoption of alternative evaluation methods for measuring functional capacity in people with cystic fibrosis, who are at high risk for severe COVID-19 outcomes. Teleassessment may be an alternative to conducting in-person field tests in this population. Objectives : To investigate the validity, reliability, and safety of field tests conducted by teleassessment in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis. Method(s): Participants underwent three functional tests: 3-min step test (3-min ST), 1-min sit-to-stand test (1-min StS), and a timed up-and-go (TUG) test performed in their homes with in-person and remote assessment, in random order. During the remote assessment, the physiotherapist was at the pulmonary rehabilitation center. The order of the tests was randomized and the same in both assessments. For validity, main outcomes were compared between in-person and remote supervision by Wilcoxon test for 3-min ST and TUG, expressed as median (IQR), and pair t -test for 1-min StS, expressed as mean (SD). For test-retest reliability (test 1 vs. test 2) of the remote tests, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 2,1) and Bland-Altman analysis were used. Result(s): Thirty-two participants (15 boys, 11 +/- 3 years, FEV 1 73 +/- 17% of predicted) were included. No significant difference was observed between in-person and remote supervision (3-min ST: 88 [83.5-90] vs. 88 [82.5-90] steps;1-min StS: 33(7) vs. 32(8) repetitions;TUG: 6.5 [5.6-8.0] vs. 6.6 [5.7-7.9] s). Test-retest of remote supervision demonstrated very good to excellent reliability for all field tests (ICC (95%CI) 3-min ST: 0.88 [0.65-0.95], 1-min StS: 0.86 [0.67-0.94], and TUG: 0.76 [0.41-0.89]). Mean difference (lower-upper limits of agreement) were 3-min-ST: -3.6 (-13.9-6.7) steps, 1-min StS: -1.9 (-8.6-4.7) repetitions, and TUG: 0.8 (-1.4-2.9) s. No adverse events were reported. Conclusion(s): In children and adolescent with cystic fibrosis, 3-min ST, 1-min StS, and TUG are valid, reliable and safe when carried out by teleassessment.
ABSTRACT
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, teaching has had emergency changes in its format, moving from the face-to-face classroom to the virtual classroom. Given this situation, one of the methods adopted in schools was the use of digital technologies to share information and knowledge to promote emergency remote teaching. The problem of this article aimed to analyze the use of technological tools for sharing information and knowledge between teachers, students and parents/guardians, in times of a pandemic, in order to facilitate the promotion of emergency remote teaching. The research is characterized by an applied nature, with descriptive objectives and characterized by quantitative approaches, with data collection. The results obtained in the case study show that the use of technological tools to share information (with families) and knowledge (with students) enabled greater participation and commitment of those responsible for the students, in a home environment, since access to content for study, pedagogical guidelines for parents and greater access to teachers, corroborated to mitigate the distance caused by the pandemic. As a continuation of this research, we point out the possible advances of new tools that can be implemented by the researched educational institution.
ABSTRACT
Objective: To determine the impact of a simulated hospital on a neurology clerkship of 5-year medical students during the coronavirus pandemic in Bogota, Colombia. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the disruption of all sectors of the economy including education. According to UNESCO, over 1.37 million young people, including medical students, were affected by the closure of the education system. The main challenge for medical education has consisted in offering clerkships within a biosafety environment. The simulated hospital emerges as a teaching tool that guarantees the development of medical skills in a biosafety environment. Design/Methods: A quasi-experimental design was conducted in a population of 5th-year medical students during their neurology clerkship. Our sample comprised two similar groups, one received a traditional face-to-face format during 2019, whereas the second group received a mixed virtual and simulation-based clerkship in 2020. All students in the pandemic group answered a Likert scale survey regarding their satisfaction with the simulated hospital. To evaluate theoretical knowledge acquisition students of both groups were required to perform a mid-term and a final examination. Results: Most of the students considered the simulated hospital a useful addition that should be incorporated into their medicine curriculum regardless of the pandemic. From the results, it is clear that students perceived that exposure to a simulated hospital facilitated their learning process (93.1%) and allowed greater interaction with the teacher compared to a face-to-face environment (77.3%). The difference in test results was not clinically significant. Conclusions: Our study shows that a simulated hospital is a highly efficient method to acquire clinical skills in trainees with improvement in medical knowledge and satisfaction evidenced by the Likert scales and comparable results in academic evaluations. Our experience indicates that exposure to a simulated hospital should be integrated into the curricular milestones of the medical education program regardless of the pandemic.