From the Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
Ann Plast Surg. 2021 Jul 1;87(1s Suppl 1):S40-S51. doi: 10.1097/SAP.0000000000002806.
E-learning is rapidly growing in medical education, overcoming physical, geographic, and time-related barriers to students. This article critically evaluates the existing research on e-learning in plastic surgery.
A systematic review of e-learning in plastic surgery was conducted using the PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Embase databases. Studies were limited to those written in English and published after 1995 and excluded short communications, letters to the editor, and articles focused on in-person simulation.
A total of 23 articles were identified. Represented subspecialties include breast, burns, craniofacial/pediatrics, hand, and microsurgery. Most e-learning resources target surgeons and trainees, but a small number are for patients, parents, and referring physicians. Users reported high levels of satisfaction with e-learning and significant gains in knowledge after completion, although there may be more variable satisfaction with teaching technical skills. Two studies showed no differences in knowledge gains from e-learning compared with traditional learning methods. Subgroup analysis showed greater benefit of e-learning for novice learners when evaluated. Surveys of plastic surgeons and trainees showed high interest in and growing utilization of e-learning.
Research in plastic surgery e-learning shows high user satisfaction and overall improvements in learning outcomes with knowledge gains equivalent to traditional teaching methods and greater benefit in novice learners. Thus, e-learning can serve an important role in plastic surgery education, especially in the current state of social distancing. Future work should aim to define learner preferences and educational needs and better establish how e-learning can augment plastic surgical education, particularly among other teaching methods.
电子学习在医学教育中迅速发展，克服了学生在物理、地理和时间方面的障碍。本文批判性地评估了整形外科电子学习的现有研究。
使用 PubMed/MEDLINE、Scopus 和 Embase 数据库对整形外科的电子学习进行了系统评价。研究仅限于 1995 年后用英文撰写并发表的研究，排除了简短交流、给编辑的信和专注于现场模拟的文章。
共确定了 23 篇文章。代表的亚专业包括乳房、烧伤、颅面/儿科、手部和显微外科。大多数电子学习资源针对外科医生和学员，但也有少数针对患者、家长和转诊医生。用户报告对电子学习高度满意，并在完成后知识显著提高，尽管在教授技术技能方面的满意度可能更具变异性。有两项研究表明，电子学习与传统学习方法相比，在知识获取方面没有差异。亚组分析显示，评估时新手学习者从电子学习中获益更大。对整形外科医生和学员的调查显示，他们对电子学习非常感兴趣，并且使用量不断增加。
整形外科电子学习的研究表明，用户满意度高，学习成果整体提高，知识获取与传统教学方法相当，新手学习者获益更大。因此，电子学习可以在整形外科教育中发挥重要作用，尤其是在目前保持社交距离的情况下。未来的工作应旨在确定学习者的偏好和教育需求，并更好地确定电子学习如何增强整形外科教育，特别是在其他教学方法方面。
