Bawadi Hiba, Abdul Rahim Hanan, Moawad Joyce, Shami Rula, Du Xiangyun, El-Awaisi Alla, Al-Moslih Ayad Moslih Ibrahim, Diab Mohammad, Al-Jayyousi Ghadir Fakhri
College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
College of Education, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
Front Med (Lausanne). 2022 Aug 9;9:939416. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2022.939416. eCollection 2022.
In efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, health colleges at Qatar University shifted their clinical training to virtual internships (VI) and project-based learning (PBL). The shift was new to students and faculty alike, and a major change that posed many challenges. This study aimed to explore the experience of changing to VIs during the pandemic from both the clinical instructors' and health sciences students' perspectives. A qualitative study was conducted based on the framework of readiness to change. It involved focus group discussions with students from the departments of Public Health and Human Nutrition and in-depth interviews with clinical instructors using appropriate online platforms. A total of 4 focus groups with 20 students and 4 interviews with instructors were conducted. Transcripts were analyzed following the inductive-deductive approach. The major themes that emerged from the analysis described students' and clinical instructors' perceptions of the necessity and efficiency of the switch to VI; the design of the VI and the extent of the clinical/field experience and skills that it offered; confidence in the ability to succeed in this type of internship and confidence about reaching expected goals; academic and moral support from clinical faculty and coordinators and the communication process with faculty and preceptors; and finally, the benefits gained and how employers would view this type of internship. Health sciences students' readiness for VI was generally low. Several student and faculty needs have to be addressed, specifically regarding the design of the program and the level of preceptors' communication with students. The findings would direct health programs, clinical instructors, and preceptors to better understand students' needs and efficiently plan for virtual internships during not only emergencies but also whenever there is a need to deliver online experiential learning courses.
为了遏制新冠疫情，卡塔尔大学的健康学院将临床培训转向了虚拟实习（VI）和基于项目的学习（PBL）。这一转变对学生和教师来说都是全新的，是一项带来诸多挑战的重大变革。本研究旨在从临床教师和健康科学专业学生的角度，探索疫情期间转向虚拟实习的经历。基于变革准备度框架进行了一项定性研究。研究包括与公共卫生和人类营养系的学生进行焦点小组讨论，以及使用合适的在线平台对临床教师进行深入访谈。共进行了4个有20名学生参与的焦点小组讨论和4次对教师的访谈。采用归纳 - 演绎法对访谈记录进行分析。分析中出现的主要主题描述了学生和临床教师对转向虚拟实习的必要性和效率的看法；虚拟实习的设计以及它所提供的临床/实地经验和技能的程度；对在这类实习中取得成功的能力的信心以及对实现预期目标的信心；临床教师和协调员提供的学术和道德支持以及与教师和指导教师的沟通流程；最后，获得的益处以及雇主对这类实习的看法。健康科学专业学生对虚拟实习的准备普遍不足。有几个学生和教师的需求必须得到解决，特别是关于项目设计以及指导教师与学生的沟通水平。这些研究结果将指导健康项目、临床教师和指导教师更好地了解学生的需求，并不仅在紧急情况下，而且在需要提供在线体验式学习课程时，有效地规划虚拟实习。
