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Büttner M, Melton P, Fietkau R, Petersen C, Krause M, Borgmann K, Wolf U, Niyazi M, Christiansen H, Höller U, Schmitt D, Käsmann L, Linde P, Fleischmann DF, Ziegler S, Bresch A, Mäurer M. Successful implementation of online educational lectures of the German Society for Radiation Oncology (DEGRO). Strahlenther Onkol 2024; 200:151-158. [PMID: 37889301 PMCID: PMC10805975 DOI: 10.1007/s00066-023-02162-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Modern digital teaching formats have become increasingly important in recent years, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2021, an online-based webinar series was established by the German Society for Radiation Oncology (DEGRO) and the young DEGRO (yDEGRO) working group. In the monthly 120-minute courses, selected lecturers teach curricular content as preparation for the board certification exam for radiation oncology. METHODS The evaluation of the 24 courses between 01.2021 and 12.2022 was performed using a standardized questionnaire with 21 items (recording epidemiological characteristics of the participants, didactic quality, content quality). A Likert scale (1-4) was used in combination with binary and open-ended questions. RESULTS A combined total of 4200 individuals (1952 in 2021 and 2248 in 2022) registered for the courses, and out of those, 934 participants (455 in 2021 and 479 in 2022) later provided evaluations for the respective courses (36% residents, 35% specialists, 21% medical technicians for radiology [MTR], 8% medical physics experts [MPE]). After 2 years, 74% of the DEGRO Academy curriculum topics were covered by the monthly webinars. The overall rating by participants was positive (mean 2021: 1.33 and 2022: 1.25) and exceeded the curriculum offered at each site for 70% of participants. Case-based learning was identified as a particularly well-rated method. CONCLUSION The DEGRO webinar expands the digital teaching opportunities in radiation oncology. The consistently high number of participants confirms the need for high-quality teaching and underlines the advantages of e‑learning methods. Optimization opportunities were identified through reevaluation of feedback from course participants. In its design as a teaching format for a multiprofessional audience, the webinar series could be used as a practice model of online teaching for other disciplines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcel Büttner
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | | | - Rainer Fietkau
- Radiation Clinic, Erlangen University Hospital, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Cordula Petersen
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Mechthild Krause
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology and National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology (OncoRay), University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Medical Faculty, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- partner site Dresden, German Cancer Consortium, Dresden, Germany
- partner site Dresden, National Center for Tumor Diseases, Dresden, Germany
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, Dresden, Germany
| | - Kerstin Borgmann
- Department of Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ulrich Wolf
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Maximilian Niyazi
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- partner site Munich, German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Munich, Germany
| | - Hans Christiansen
- Clinic for Radiotherapy and Special Oncology, Hanover Medical School, Hanover, Germany
| | | | - Daniela Schmitt
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Lukas Käsmann
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- partner site Munich, German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Munich, Germany
| | - Philipp Linde
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Cyberknife and Radiation Therapy, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital of Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Integrated Oncology (CIO), University Hospital of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University of Cologne, Kerpener St 62, 50937, Cologne, Germany
| | - Daniel F Fleischmann
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- partner site Munich, German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Sonia Ziegler
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Angelique Bresch
- Office of the German Society for Radiation Oncology (DEGRO), Berlin, Germany
| | - Matthias Mäurer
- Department for Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Jena, Friedrich-Schiller-University, Bachstr. 18, 07743, Jena, Germany.
- Clinician Scientist Program "OrganAge", Jena University Hospital, 07747, Jena, Germany.
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Abstract
Telemedicine has become fundamental for the challenges posed to healthcare. This set of instruments turns pivotal for facing one of the most relevant emergencies in human history: the COVID-19 pandemic. The multisectoral crisis led to a vigorously sustained adoption of innovations, including telemedicine technology. Telehealth was proven, in this context, to be a relevant tool to reduce healthcare costs, reduce not-needed hospitalizations, and improve the results in health care. Some barriers such as the costs of technologies, patient privacy and technical literacy have slowed down telemedicine adoption. Amidst the COVID-19 era, telemedicine calls for a managerial duty to change healthcare's organizational models. The present work aims to explore the growing literature to illuminate the relationships between telemedicine, innovations and healthcare in the COVID-19 framework. A bibliometric analysis of the existing literature based on 285 published works in 2019–2020 is put forward with the aim to detect the relevant literature, themes and approaches on telemedicine and COVID-19. Making use of community detection on the co-occurrence keywords network, we identify the “semantic cores” in the literature representing the relevant results on critical themes. The sorting implications are important for researchers and policymakers by mapping the existing literature and results in evidence-based analysis. We provide the key communities as the “semantic core” of the publications and results for the considered period. This allows for future research to be oriented towards perduring health policies that could lead to the adoption of telemedicine technologies in a post-pandemic scenario.
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Ma TM, Parikh NR, Philipson RG, van Dams R, Chang EM, Hegde JV, Kishan AU, Kaprealian TB, Steinberg ML, Raldow AC. Experience of Telemedicine Visits in Radiation Oncology During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A US National Survey and Lessons Learned for Incorporating Telemedicine Post-COVID-19. Adv Radiat Oncol 2023; 8:100924. [PMID: 36532603 PMCID: PMC9744187 DOI: 10.1016/j.adro.2022.100924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose We sought to survey the attitudes and perceptions of US radiation oncologists toward the adoption of telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic and offer suggestions for its integration in the postpandemic era. Methods and Materials A 25-question, anonymous online survey was distributed nationwide to radiation oncologists. Results One hundred and twenty-one respondents completed the survey, with 92% from academia. Overall, 79% worked at institutions that had implemented a work-from-home policy, with which 74% were satisfied. Despite nearly all visit types being conducted in-person before COVID-19, 25%, 41%, and 5% of the respondents used telemedicine for more than half of their new consultations, follow-up, and on-treatment visits, respectively, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most (83%) reported being comfortable integrating telemedicine. Although telemedicine was appreciated as being more convenient for patients (97%) and reducing transmission of infectious agents (83%), the most commonly perceived disadvantages were difficulty in performing physical examinations (90%), patients' inability to use technology adequately (74%), and technical malfunctions (72%). Compared with in-person visits, telemedicine was felt to be inferior in establishing a personal connection during consultation (90%) and assessing for toxicity while on-treatment (88%) and during follow-up (70%). For follow-up visits, genitourinary and thoracic were perceived as most appropriate for telemedicine while gynecologic and head and neck were considered the least appropriate. Overall, 70% were in favor of more telemedicine, even after pandemic is over. Conclusions Telemedicine will likely remain part of the radiation oncology workflow in most clinics after the pandemic. It should be used in conjunction with in-person visits, and may be best used for conducting follow-up visits in certain disease sites such as genitourinary and thoracic malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Martin Ma
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | | | - Rebecca G. Philipson
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Torrance Memorial Medical Center, Torrance, California
| | - Ritchell van Dams
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute/Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Eric M. Chang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon
| | - John V. Hegde
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Amar U. Kishan
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Tania B. Kaprealian
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Michael L. Steinberg
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Ann C. Raldow
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California,Corresponding author: Ann C. Raldow, MD, MPH
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