[From in-person didactic sessions to videoconferencing during the COVID-19 pandemic: satisfaction survey among participants].

INTRODUCTION AND AIM

COVID-19 pandemic has disturbed many hospital activities, including medical education. We describe the switch from in-person didactic sessions to videoconferencing in a Neurology department. We analyse the opinions and satisfaction of participants.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Narrative description of the adopted measures; Online survey among participants.

RESULTS

One of the three weekly sessions was cancelled, and two switched to videoconferencing. There were more participants online than in the conference hall. 49 users answered the survey, 51% women, mean age 40.5 years (range 25-65). Satisfaction was higher for previous face-to-face meetings (8.68) than for videoconferencing (8.12) (p=0.006). There was a significant inverse correlation between age and satisfaction with virtual sessions (r=-0.37; p=0.01), that was not found for in-person attendance. Most users (75.5%) would prefer to continue with online sessions when the pandemic is over, and 87.8% support inter-hospital remote meetings, but the safety of web platforms is a concern (53.1%).

CONCLUSIONS

The change from in-person to virtual sessions is an easy measure to implement in a neurology department, with a good degree of satisfaction among users. There are some unsolved problems with the use of commercial web platforms and inter-hospital connection. Most users recommend leadership and support from educational and health authorities.