Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), PMB University Post Office , Kumasi, Ghana.
Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Level B, South Academic Block, Southampton General Hospital , Southampton, UK.
Glob Health Action. 2020 Dec 31;13(1):1831794. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2020.1831794.
Global demand for capacity building has increased interest for eLearning. As eLearning resources become more common, effective implementation is required to scale up utilization in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs).
This paper describes the process of implementing a malnutrition eLearning course, effectiveness of course delivery models devised, factors affecting course completion, and cost comparison between the models and face-to-face training at healthcare and academic institutions in Ghana.
Four delivery models: Mobile Training Centre (MTC), Online Delivery (OD), Institutional Computer Workstation (ICW) and Mixed Delivery (MD) - a combination of OD and ICW - were determined. Participants were enabled to access the course using one of the four models where contextually appropriate. Pre and post-assessments and questionnaires were administered to compare participants' course completion status and knowledge gain between delivery models. The effect of access to computer and Internet at home and relevance of course to job and academic progression on course completion were further investigated. Comparison of delivery model costs against face-to-face training was also undertaken.
Of 7 academic and 9 healthcare institutions involving 915 people, 9 used MTC (34.8%), 3 OD (18.8%), 3 ICW (34.2%) and 1 MD (12.2%). Course completion was higher among institutions where the course was relevant to job or implemented as part of required curriculum activities. Knowledge gain was significant among most participants, but higher among those who found the course relevant to job or academic progression. The implementation costs per participant for training with MTC were £51.0, OD £2.2, ICW £1.2 and MD £1.1, compared with a face-to-face training estimate of £105.0 (1 GHS = 0.14 GBP).
The malnutrition eLearning course makes global capacity building in malnutrition management achievable. Adopting contextually appropriate delivery models and ensuring training is relevant to job/academic progression can enhance eLearning effectiveness in LMICs.
全球对能力建设的需求增加了对电子学习的兴趣。随着电子学习资源变得更加普遍，需要有效的实施来扩大在中低收入国家（LMICs）的利用。
本文描述了实施营养不良电子学习课程的过程，设计的课程交付模式的有效性，影响课程完成的因素，以及模型与加纳医疗保健和学术机构的面对面培训之间的成本比较。
确定了四种交付模式：移动培训中心（MTC）、在线交付（OD）、机构计算机工作站（ICW）和混合交付（MD）-OD 和 ICW 的组合-根据上下文情况，参与者可以使用其中一种模型访问课程。在交付模式之间，通过预评估和后评估以及问卷调查来比较参与者的课程完成情况和知识收益。进一步调查了在家中访问计算机和互联网的机会以及课程与工作和学术进展的相关性对课程完成的影响。还对交付模式成本与面对面培训进行了比较。
在涉及 915 人的 9 个学术和 9 个医疗机构中，有 9 个使用了 MTC（34.8%）、3 个 OD（18.8%）、3 个 ICW（34.2%）和 1 个 MD（12.2%）。在课程与工作相关或作为规定课程活动的一部分实施的机构中，课程完成率更高。大多数参与者的知识收益显著，但那些认为课程与工作或学术进展相关的参与者的知识收益更高。MTC 培训的每位参与者的实施成本为 51.0 英镑，OD 为 2.2 英镑，ICW 为 1.2 英镑，MD 为 1.1 英镑，而面对面培训的估计成本为 105.0 英镑（1 GHS = 0.14 GBP）。
营养不良电子学习课程使全球营养不良管理能力建设成为可能。在中低收入国家，采用与上下文相关的交付模式并确保培训与工作/学术进展相关，可以提高电子学习的效果。
