Virtual Spine: A Novel, International Teleconferencing Program Developed to Increase the Accessibility of Spine Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
World Neurosurg
; 140: e367-e372, 2020 08.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-401403
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The coronavirus identified in 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic effectively ended all major spine educational conferences in the first half of 2020. In response, the authors formed a "virtual" case-based conference series directed at delivering spine education to health care providers around the world. We herein share the technical logistics, early participant feedback, and future direction of this initiative.METHODS:
The Virtual Global Spine Conference (VGSC) was created in April 2020 by a multiinstitutional team of spinal neurosurgeons and a neuroradiologist. Biweekly virtual meetings were established wherein invited national and international spine care providers would deliver case-based presentations on spine and spine surgery-related conditions via teleconferencing. Promotion was coordinated through social media platforms such as Twitter.RESULTS:
VGSC recruited more than 1000 surgeons, trainees, and other specialists, with 50-100 new registrants per week thereafter. An early survey to the participants, with 168 responders, indicated that 92% viewed the content as highly valuable to their practice and 94% would continue participating post COVID-19. Participants from the United States (29%), Middle East (16%), and Europe (12%) comprised the majority of the audience. Approximately 52% were neurosurgeons, 18% orthopedic surgeons, and 6% neuroradiologists. A majority of participants were physicians (55%) and residents/fellows (21%).CONCLUSIONS:
The early success of the VGSC reflects a strong interest in spine education despite the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing guidelines. There is widespread opinion, backed by our own survey results, that many clinicians and trainees want to see "virtual" education continue post COVID-19.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pneumonia, Viral
/
Spine
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Pandemics
/
Orthopedic Surgeons
/
Betacoronavirus
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
World Neurosurg
Journal subject:
Neurosurgery
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS