SHBC1145
J.LU1, L.CAR2, M.SOON2, C.CHIA1
Khoo Teck Puat Hospital1, Nanyang Technological University2
COVID-19 has disrupted medical education with reduced opportunities for face-to-face interaction and patient contact. Online learning circumvents these restrictions and are increasingly used. This study aims to assess the usage and students’ perceptions of learning efficacy of an app-based messaging platform, Telegram, in surgical education.
A Telegram channel for surgical education, TESLA, was created on 16 October 2020 and medical students from Lee Kong Chian and Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine who rotated to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Department of General Surgery were invited to join the channel. Daily MCQ quiz on real-life authentic clinical problems were posted and explanations and further learning resources are provided. A flipped classroom model was also implemented with the channel disseminated before the start of subsequent students’ surgical rotation. Data such as channel subscription, post sharing and viewership rates were collected. A semi-structured interview with volunteer participants to assess their learning experience will be conducted with thematic analysis.
There are 943 subscribers to TESLA from 16th October 2020 to 11th July 2021. Average viewers per post was 648. Average participation rate per question was 68.3%. Average shares per post was 36. Peak viewership is during 0700-0800 and 1200-1400 hours. The results of the qualitative interview will be collected and analysed.
Preliminary data shows good participation rate and engagement. Peak viewership during morning commute periods and lunch breaks suggests that students could be capitalizing on ‘micro-moments’ to practice asynchronous learning. TESLA is a useful app-based learning platform for online learning in the new norm.
