BACKGROUND

Leprosy continues to pose significant health challenges globally, leading to stigma and disability when left untreated. Patient education is crucial in addressing these challenges. While traditional health lectures (THL) are widely used, they face limitations such as inconsistent delivery and low patient engagement. Video-based education (VBE) offers a more modern, scalable alternative, enhancing learning through immersive technology.

This study compared the effectiveness of VBE versus THL in improving leprosy patients’ understanding, perspectives, and quality of life (QoL) in a tertiary hospital in the Philippines

A randomized controlled trial with 1:1 allocation ratio was conducted among 57 leprosy patients, divided into VBE and THL groups. Baseline and post-intervention questionnaires measured understanding, patient perspectives, and QoL using the Dermatology Life Quality Index, collected immediately after and two weeks post-intervention. Statistical analyses included chi-squared tests, t-tests, and Pearson’s correlations.

VBE significantly improved patients’ understanding, perspectives, and QoL compared to THL. Post-intervention, 43% of VBE participants showed a high level of understanding, versus 24% in the THL group (p = 0.048). VBE had greater positive impact on patient perspectives and QoL (p = 0.011 and p = 0.046). Knowledge retention was higher in VBE group after two weeks (p = 0.0373), with improvements in understanding strongly linked to better perspectives and QoL (r = 0.54 and r = 0.65).

VBE proved more effective than THL in enhancing understanding and retention, perspectives, and QOL. With its multi-sensory, scalable format, VBE offers a promising and efficient tool for patient education, particularly in resource-limited settings.

BACKGROUND

Family Medicine educators play a vital role in the age of Universal Health in the Philippines to strengthen the competencies of primary care providers through education and training; hence the need for pedagogy and content to harmonise with technology in the midst of modern-day global trends and standards, and of the changing needs of 21st century learners. These educators benefit from quality improvement methods that begin with benchmarking and monitoring though valid and reliable measurements.

This study aimed to develop a measurement tool for the attitudes of Family Medicine educators in optimising the use of technology in education by using the methodological development steps in creating assessment tools including content & face validation and modification of items generated from various behavioural models and a validated tool; simplifying the tool through factor analysis; and determining the reliability of its final version.

The study was able to create a questionnaire of 26 validated items with an overall internal consistency of 0.932, distributed into six subscales with beyond-satisfactory-to- excellent reliabilities.

This study evaluates a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Emergency Medicine designed by iEM Education Project and Lecturio, using a validated checklist to assess its usability and user experience. The MOOC received a high score for cognitive connection (>4/5), in four components including interactivity, content and resources, media use, and instructional assessment. However, for learner guidance and support, the score was 2.75/5, indicating that the course did not provide clear instructions on how learners can get support or feedback from teachers when encountering problems in the course. For affective and functional connections, all components received a high overall mean score of more than 4/5. The course was impactful to the users who were in their early clinical years, as they were actively engaged and were motivated to complete the course. However, improvements should be made to better stimulate learning by improving learner feedback and providing space for collaborative learning online. Evaluation of MOOC applying the heuristics of usability and user experience identifies specific components of online learning course apart from rating the severity of acceptance or violation of instructional design principles. The information derived from usability and user experience studies can improve design and delivery of online courses.
User-Centered Design ; Educational Technology ; Emergency Medicine

PURPOSE: This study investigated student experiences of mobile technology in a medical English course using a free mobile classroom application, Socrative and its impact on student learning to help them achieve the competency expected in the course. METHODS: Questionnaires were administered of year 2 medical students enrolled in a medical English course between 2016 and 2017 to investigate their experience in using Socrative. Learning outcomes were assessed by comparing students' academic performance with that of the 2015 cohort, who had taken the same course without using mobile technology, and also by measuring changes in their self-efficacy in English over time during the course. RESULTS: This study found students' positive perceptions of and overall satisfaction with their experience in using mobile technology in the medical English course. There were no differences in the academic performance between the study cohort and the comparison group. The ratio of students who were in the remediation program after the mid-term examination was 11%, whereas the remediation ratio of the 2015 cohort was 21%. Students' self-efficacy in English improved significantly in the writing and reading domains (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This study found several benefits of using Socrative in the medical English course. Socrative fostered the classroom interaction by encouraging input from every student and sharing it instantly with the whole class. There was also learning improvement with the use of Socrative. Furthermore, it has the potential to enhance assessment by offering more various forms of assessment than that of conventional audience response systems.
Cohort Studies ; Educational Technology ; Humans ; Learning ; Mobile Applications ; Problem-Based Learning ; Students, Medical ; Teaching ; Writing

OBJECTIVES: There is a growing trend of medical students using electronic devices for studying. This paper analyzes such trend and assesses if the utilization of devices is adequate to effectively help students to study. METHODS: Survey of total 155 medical students about the usage of the electronic devices for studying during the first year of medical school was done. The answers were matched with their exam scores in the first year. RESULTS: Most of students were using a device, as a learning tool and the most important purpose of it was its convenience, especially for taking notes during lectures. However, students who didn't use a device when they learned anatomy or who studied with the printouts showed a tendency of receiving better scores on exams. CONCLUSION: Utilizing electronic devices for studying tends to be more convenient, but not effective for studying anatomy.
Educational Technology ; Humans ; Learning ; Lectures ; Schools, Medical ; Students, Medical*

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to confirm the applicability of YouTube as a delivery platform of lecture videos for dental students and to assess their learning attitudes towards the flipped classroom model. METHODS: Learning experiences after using the YouTube platform to deliver preliminary video lectures in a flipped classroom were assessed by 69 second-year students (52 males, 17 females) at Dankook University College of Dentistry, Korea, who attended periodontology lectures during 2 consecutive semesters of the 2016 academic year. The instructor uploaded the lecture videos to YouTube before each class. At the end of the second semester, the students were surveyed using a questionnaire devised by the authors. RESULTS: Of the students, 53 (76.8%) always watched the lecture before the class, 48 (69.6%) used their smartphones, and 66 (95.7%) stated that they watched the lectures at home. The majority of the students replied that the video lectures were easier to understand than face to face lectures (82.6%) and that they would like to view the videos again after graduation (73.9%). CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that YouTube is an applicable platform to deliver video lectures and to expose students to increased learning opportunities.
Dentistry ; Education, Dental ; Educational Technology ; Humans ; Korea ; Learning ; Lectures ; Male ; Republic of Korea ; Smartphone ; Students, Dental

OBJECTIVES: This study developed a smartphone nutritional application (app) for making smart and healthy choices when purchasing food in grocery stores and tested its feasibility, usability, satisfaction and acceptability. METHODS: “MyNutriCart” was developed following the ADDIE (analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation) model. The goals of the app were to improve food selection when purchasing foods in the grocery stores based on a pre-defined budget, to improve dietary patterns based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and to improve weight status. It was evaluated within a pilot randomized trial using a convenient sample of 26 overweight or obese adults aged 21–45 years for 8 weeks. RESULTS: The developed app provided a grocery list of healthy foods to meet the individual requirements of all family members within a budget following the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The average use of the app was 75% on each purchase and only 37% of the recommended products were purchased. The main reasons for not purchasing the recommended items were that participants did not like these (28.5%) and that the item was unavailable in the supermarket (24.3%). Over 50% of participants considered the app as feasible, usable, satisfactory, and acceptable (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: “MyNutriCart” is the first available app for making smart and healthy choices when purchasing food in grocery stores. This app could be used as a tool to translate recommendations into a practical grocery list that meet the needs of a family within a budget.
Adult ; Budgets ; Diet ; Educational Technology ; Food Preferences ; Humans ; Mobile Applications ; Nutrition Policy ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Smartphone*

We attempted to develop a problem-based learning (PBL) module for integrated education in dental hygiene with the aim of helping students gain clinical competencies necessary for dental hygienist work. To develop the PBL Module for Clinical Dentistry in Dental Hygiene course, the researchers identified literature related to not only educational technology, but also medical science, nursing, dentistry, and dental hygiene. During the design phase of the PBL module, problem scenarios and a plan for the teaching and learning process were developed. Developing problem scenarios involved describing a problematic situation and three questions related with that situation. To cultivate competencies required in dental clinics, each question was related to the diagnosis of a dental disease, dental treatment, and dental hygiene procedures for care. Teaching-learning process plan included the designs of operating environment, operational strategies, learning resources, facilitation of problem-solving process, and evaluation. It is necessary to evaluate the PBL module for integrated education in dental hygiene to confirm its effectiveness.
Clinical Competence ; Dental Clinics ; Dental Hygienists ; Dentistry* ; Diagnosis ; Education ; Educational Technology ; Humans ; Learning ; Nursing ; Oral Hygiene* ; Problem-Based Learning* ; Stomatognathic Diseases

Comprehensive education is the cornerstone of diabetes management. However, in Korea, diabetes education is constrained by short office visits. This article intends to introduce various educational strategies, particularly regarding diet style modification, that can be employed in the time-limited outpatient setting to improve diabetes management. Instructing patients to reduce their intake of carbohydrates, the predominant nutrient consumed in a traditional Korean diet, may be beneficial. The use of novel educational technologies or the introduction of new healthy diet plans may also help.
Carbohydrates ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diet* ; Diet, Diabetic ; Education* ; Educational Technology ; Humans ; Korea ; Nutrition Therapy ; Office Visits ; Outpatients

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to develop a smartphone application (app) as an educational learning instrument for coronary artery disease (CAD) patients and to assess the users' level of satisfaction. METHODS: This methodological research involves elicited learning content for CAD patients to develop a learning instrument using the smartphone app. The app was developed according to the steps of Assessment, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation, which is a systematic instructional design model. The levels of satisfaction with the developed smartphone app among 30 outpatients with CAD were assessed via a questionnaire during their visits to a cardiology outpatient department. RESULTS: A smartphone app 'Strong Heart' was developed through reviewing the literature associated with education for CAD patients under professional supervision and searching for medical smartphone apps that are already available. The learning contents include six main sections containing essential learning issues in managing CAD and additional information to attract the user's attention, such as patient cases and quizzes. After modification with feedback from experts, the app was finally developed and evaluated by patients who reported that they were satisfied with the usefulness of the app. CONCLUSIONS: The developed smartphone app is available on both the iPhone App Store and the Android Play Store. Patients with CAD may utilize the app for supporting educational material without limitations of time and space.
Cardiology ; Coronary Artery Disease* ; Education ; Educational Technology ; Humans ; Learning ; Mobile Applications ; Organization and Administration ; Outpatients ; Patient Education as Topic ; Surveys and Questionnaires