Urology Virtual Education Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic
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EDUCATION (G BADALATO AND E MARGOLIN, SECTION EDITORS)
Urology Virtual Education Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic Michael Smigelski 1
&
Miyad Movassaghi 1 & Alexander Small 2
Accepted: 15 October 2020 # Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Purpose of Review This article aims to describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on American urology trainees, with a focus on virtual learning initiatives. Recent Findings Urological education was forced to rapidly adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Significant challenges included quarantines, redeployment of residents and faculty, and suspension of regularly scheduled conferences. In response, urologists across the country adopted web-based platforms to develop virtual lecture series to fill the gap. Popular programs for residents included UCSF’s COViD (Collaborative Online Video Didactics) series and the New York Section of the American Urological Association’s EMPIRE (Educational Multi-institutional Program for Instructing REsidents) series. Summary Virtual education programs have enabled urology trainees to pursue their education during the pandemic. While the long-term impact of the pandemic on urology training remains unknown, some good may be found in the innovative solutions that have arisen in urology education. Keywords Medical education . COVID-19 . Virtual learning . Residency . Burnout . Wellness
Introduction The USA and New York City in particular emerged as epicenters of the global novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) [1]. In addition to significant loss of life, straining of healthcare resources, and possibly long-lasting economic devastation, normal medical routines were suspended at hospitals across the country. In an effort to conserve healthcare resources, including personal protective equipment (PPE) and hospital beds and staff, surgical procedures were curtailed for months. Meanwhile, residents in surgical training programs were reassigned to overwhelmed emergency departments, COVID-19 wards, and intensive care units. A nationwide survey of program directors by the Society of Academic Urologists (SAU) published in April 2020 captured the challenges facing academic training institutions and This article is part of the Topical Collection on Education * Michael Smigelski [email protected] 1
NewYork-Presbyterian / Columbia University Irving Medical Center, 161 Fort Washington Avenue, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10032, USA
2
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
beyond during the height of the pandemic [2]. Of the 45% of US programs that completed the survey, major disruptions included reserve staffing in 80%, resident redeployment in 26%, and residents under formal quarantine in 55% of programs. While work hours were modified, patient contact time fell to just 2.1 days per week, and 60% of programs reported concerns that residents would not meet minimum case requirements. These findings were particularly prominent in states with a high incidence of COVID-19, with 48% of resid
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