Experiences of virtual teaching during COVID-19 in medical institutes of Karachi, Pakistan: teachers' perspective.

Objective: To determine the experiences of faculty members related to virtual teaching. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted from January 15 to March 15, 2021, at undergraduate medical institutions located in Karachi, and comprised all the faculty members. Data was collected using a Google Survey questionnaire, and it was analysed using SPSS 20. RESULTS: Of the 385 subjects, 157(40.78%) were from basic sciences faculty, and 228(59.2%) were from the clinical sciences faculty. The majority had 3-5 years of teaching experience 142(37%). The most common online tool was Zoom 250(65%). The faculty who had prior experience or had received formal training for online teaching was more successful in controlling and engaging students than the rest (p<0.001). Those who had enough computer literacy had a better experience in conducting online teaching sessions (p=0.01). The experienced faculty found the opportunity to focus more on the topic that was to be taught online (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Most of the faculty members used online tool Zoom. Faculty members with computer literacy and proper training for online teaching were more successful in controlling and engaging students and conducting online teaching sessions.

Frequency of mental distress among medical students from selected medical colleges of Pakistan: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To find out the frequency of mental distress among medical students in Pakistani medical colleges. METHODS: The systematic review comprised a search on PubMed and Google Scholar databases for articles published in English language between 2004 and 2019 having the key words 'mental distress', 'medical undergraduate', 'depression' and 'anxiety'. After a four-phase scrutiny process, articles were shortlisted for detailed review. Conventional content analysis was utilised for data analysis. RESULTS: Of the 30 articles, 18(60%) were reviewed in detail. Distress among Pakistani medical students was reported up to 90% which is alarmingly high. Study year, financial issues and academic burden were the noteworthy causal factors. Academics and examinations were substantial stress factors and religion was the commonly adopted coping strategy. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple studies showed evidence of an increasing rate of mental distress among medical undergraduates having various causative factors, mainly the academic burden.