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Education for All: Applying Digital Innovation to Democratize Medical Education
Purpose: To provide a descriptive analysis of Education for All (EFA).
Background: The Covid-19 global pandemic has forced medical educators to rethink delivery of didactics. No single event since Flexner’s 1910 report has imposed so much change in medical education. EFA was born out of this cataclysmic disruption.
Methods: EFA is an open-access digital learning platform which educators contribute and from which they can benefit. Residency programs post lecture schedules on EFA, allowing learners from other programs to participate. Additionally, and more significantly, video lectures can be uploaded so users can view them asynchronously. Access is free. The motto of EFA is “Adapt, Overcome, and Continue”.
Results: Between the inception of EFA in April and August 2020, there have been 13,522 visits overall to the site. There have been 7406 unique visitors to the site. 114 residency programs and/or medical institutions are represented. Overall, there are 315 registered users: 47 program directors, 23 program managers, 30 faculty members, and 215 as trainees.
Discussions: The concept of EFA is simple but the effect is significant. It has allowed programs to pool and continue didactics during this crisis. It enables programs to distribute the academic load but it also allows residents to be exposed to different lecturers and topics that programs cannot cover. The lecture library, the most significant aspect of EFA, allows residents to view lectures on demand and benefit from excellent lecturers from other programs. Similarly, the website allows lecturers to be exposed to other programs and for junior faculty this may help with promotion.
Topics:
CREOG & APGO Annual Meeting, 2021, Resident, Faculty, Clerkship Director, Clerkship Coordinator, Residency Director, Residency Coordinator, Patient Care, Medical Knowledge, GME, CME, UME, Lecture,
