Health Sciences Faculty’s Perceptions of Educational Changes During COVID-19: Global Lessons

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on health sciences education, and impacted clinical training, teaching methodologies, and institutional practices. Within the higher education literature during the height of the pandemic, several research studies focused on the impact of the pandemic on the students, but not on health sciences educators. Our study used thematic analysis to analyze the higher education literature from the CHELD v2 database to learn about the perspectives of health sciences educators. Out of 738 articles in the CHELD v2 database, we identified 14 articles that were focused on the perspectives of health sciences educators. The resulting thematic categories related to faculty development, student assessment, clinical education techniques, and insights into the pivot to online teaching. While our study contributes to the health sciences education literature by identifying themes from global health sciences educators’ perspectives, this study also paves the way to better understand institutional and student perspectives in a more inclusive way for the health sciences.

1. Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic, which began in early 2020, profoundly impacted global health systems, economies, and education. For health sciences education, the pandemic introduced unprecedented challenges and required rapid adaptation from educators and institutions worldwide. The health sciences education sector includes a wide array of disciplines, such as medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and allied health professions. Traditionally, these programs depend on hands-on training, clinical experiences, and face-to-face interactions. The pandemic compelled health sciences education institutions to rapidly adapt to new modes of teaching and learning, with less reliance on face-to-face interactions, profoundly affecting how students and educators engaged with the curriculum.

With the onset of the pandemic, most educational institutions worldwide pivoted from in-person to online teaching. Higher education institutions rapidly adapted their pedagogical methods to ensure the continuation of learning in the face of the unprecedented crisis posed by the pandemic [1]. This transition was more challenging for health sciences education compared to other fields due to the reliance on laboratory work, clinical rotations, and practical skills training. Online platforms had to be rapidly adapted to accommodate these needs, which led to both opportunities and challenges.

Goh and Sandars [2] found that while many educators successfully implemented online teaching strategies, their quality and effectiveness varied widely. Educators had to develop new ways to engage students and deliver content effectively, often with limited prior experience in online teaching. Lack of planning, lack of resources, and the limited interactions between faculty and students were found to contribute to the barriers to online learning [3].

While studies about health sciences education at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic have focused upon the perspective of the students [4], this study focuses on the health science educators. Using the CHELD v2 database, it analyzes the higher education literature, using thematic analysis to learn about the health sciences educators’ perspectives about teaching during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Literature Search Strategy

This review uses the COVID-19 in Higher Education Literature Database v2 (CHELD v2), previously described by Butler-Henderson et al. [5] CHELD v2 is an open access database containing 738 peer-reviewed journal articles addressing the higher education literature published during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic [5]. CHELD v2 is an updated version of the COVID-19 in Higher Education Literature Database V1.0 (CHELD), expanding CHELD an additional 6 months, from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020 [5]. This first year of the pandemic, from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020, was challenging for global higher education as instruction quickly changed from being in-person to being online. Curating the existing literature, CHELD v2 is an excellent resource for scholars seeking to analyze and understand the impact of COVID-19 on higher education.

2.2. Data Analysis

This review draws upon CHELD v2 to conduct a thematic analysis of 738 articles on COVID-19’s impact on higher education, published between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2020, adopting Braun and Clarke’s framework [6]. As the topic of this study is educators’ perspectives on health sciences teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, we first screened the articles and removed those related to other disciplines, such as humanities and STEM. We then screened and assessed the 114 articles addressing the health sciences discipline. We excluded articles that were not focused on health science educators, such as university-wide approaches to education during COVID-19 (n = 19); commentaries, reflections, opinions/perspectives, or other non-research-based articles (n = 23); articles reporting the student response (n = 55); articles based on research prior to COVID-19 (n = 1); and articles not available in English (n = 1). Figure 1 depicts our article identification process.

3. Results

Out of all 738 articles in CHELD v2, we identified fourteen (14) articles using this process which were reviewed by the three authors to identify the themes elucidated in each article. Our findings were categorized as related to either faculty development, student assessment, clinical education techniques, and insights into the pivot to online teaching.

4. Discussion

A review of research conducted on health sciences teaching programs specifically related to educators’ experiences during the pandemic was carried out by reviewing the CHELDv2 database. Several themes of interest emerged from this review. Each of the four themes are discussed in greater detail below and are illustrated in Figure 2.

4.1. Strategies for Faculty Development

The first emergent theme was strategies for faculty development, specifically related to the importance of designing appropriate activities and providing prompt and constructive feedback to students, and the value of providing additional practice experience. Surprisingly, faculty survey participants discovered that there were fewer interruptions and better participation when faculty development workshops were conducted online. The changes that were made by faculty because of the limitations to assembling face-to-face provided value to the program [7,8].

4.2. Strategies to Improve Student Assessment

The second theme identified was strategies to improve student assessment, and many new approaches were employed. For example, high-stakes online examinations were instituted, and, in general, faculty were satisfied with the process and results [9]. Assessment tools that identified students’ strengths and weaknesses were devised; artificial intelligence and learning analytics were incorporated into these tools. Learning management systems (such as Blackboard) and online communications technologies (such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams) were used to complement and support student assessment [9]. However, areas of opportunity were also recognized. For example, programs reported that Internet connection quality was a challenge. In addition, faculty often required additional I.T. support to realize the benefits of online technology [9]. Faculty also noted that preparing and managing online examinations was more time-consuming than administering paper examinations [7,9,10,11].

4.3. Strategies to Improve Clinical Education Techniques

The third theme that emerged from this review was strategies to improve clinical education techniques. Teaching clinical skills is particularly important in face-to-face settings and health sciences programs from around the globe sought innovative methods to transition such teaching to an online setting. The results of studies from this area included programs using technology such as videoconferencing; those introducing blended learning approaches that included 3D printing, virtual interactive anatomy dissection tables, and 3D reconstruction models [12]; those creating virtual curricula with case-based asynchronous learning; and the shift to the employment of simulation labs. Faculty, in general, reported that they created more meaningful connections with their students [13], had a positive perspective of implementing online learning, and adapted quickly, with the knowledge gain regarding implementing online learning being “very high”. However, other faculty revealed an unwillingness to incorporate and normalize online teaching after the end of the pandemic [10]. Faculty and students also differed in their perceptions of the amount of time for which online learning should be used for the theoretical portion of the curriculum: instructors indicated that only 39% should be taught online while students thought that 52% was the correct amount. Instructors and students also differed in their perspectives of the positive-rated aspects of online learning [10,12,13,14,15,16]

4.4. Strategies for the Rapid Pivot to Online Learning

The final theme that emerged from this review was strategies for the rapid pivot to online learning. Faculty members of many programs, particularly clinical-based programs, had not fully realized the capabilities of online learning and were forced to pivot quickly from face-to-face instruction; they did so, providing exceptional instruction. Despite that, several programs reported that the sudden pivot revealed exceptional resilience on the part of the faculty but also showed areas needing improvement. One sub-theme was the critical importance of student/faculty collaboration and communication [17,18,19,20].

The authors also conducted an extensive search of studies published after 2020 that focused on the faculty aspect of teaching during the pandemic. Two studies [21,22] retrospectively examined faculty perspectives on the pandemic’s impact on teaching. Neither of these studies, however, addressed the emerging themes identified in the 2020 studies. A host of studies, however, assessed anxiety [23], burnout, and compassion fatigue [24], as well as the mental health struggles of faculty [25,26]. Again, none of these studies investigated any of the emerging themes revealed in the studies from 2020. Clearly, a void in the literature exists in examining studies for developing faculty, improving student assessment, improving clinical education, and the rapid pivot to online learning triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

4.5. Strengths and Limitations

One of the strengths of this study is that it analyzed peer-reviewed journal articles addressing higher education published during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in the CHELDv2 database, focusing specifically on the global experiences of health sciences educators. No other articles were identified by the authors as using the CHELDv2 database for this purpose. While other studies drew on the existing literature, these involved a smaller number of articles [27] or focused more broadly on several components of online learning in clinical medical education, such as institutions and students [3]; this study focuses on health sciences faculty. Moreover, other studies relied on methods such as online questionnaires [28] or focus groups [29], which provide important perspectives, but are narrower in their breadth.

As with all research studies, this study also has its limitations. We address the health sciences faculty’s perspectives of educating during a pandemic; however, our study does not address the perspectives of health sciences students or institutional regarding learning and operating during a pandemic. Moreover, our research highlights the dearth of articles published during 2020 that focused on health sciences faculty perspectives. The authors hope that, moving forward, more research can be conducted analyzing health sciences educators’ perspectives during significant educational disruptions, such as COVID-19.

4.6. Areas of Future Research

While this article contributes to the literature by identifying and analyzing the global themes faced by health sciences educators during the pandemic, future research on health sciences students and institutional perspectives is necessary to better understand the context and complete environment of health sciences education during a pandemic. An inclusive look at all the major stakeholders in health sciences education, ideally using mixed methods, will enable policymakers, administrators, educators, and others to better prepare to modify the existing curriculum and strategize for future educational challenges.

5. Conclusions

The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on health sciences education, leading to significant changes in teaching methodologies, clinical training, and institutional practices. Health sciences educators worldwide faced numerous hurdles, but also demonstrated resilience and innovation in adapting to the new educational landscape. The rapid transition to online learning and the adoption of innovative solutions demonstrated the potential for technology to enhance health sciences education. Health sciences educators will need to integrate the lessons learned from the pandemic to develop more resilient and adaptable educational practices. This includes leveraging technology to enhance learning while ensuring that students receive essential hands-on experiences. The lessons learned during this period will shape the future of health sciences education, emphasizing the importance of flexibility, adaptation, and comprehensive support, so educators are prepared for future pandemics and challenges.

This paper analyzes the studies that are specific to health sciences education in the CHELDv2 database and provides a thematic overview of the broad areas covered by these studies. Our article lays the groundwork for future research to expand upon these thematic areas and provides an overview, allowing for administrators and policymakers to consider these themes as part of their post-COVID-19 recovery efforts for higher education. Our analysis also offers critical insights into how the higher education sector needs to change to be more responsive, as well as how the higher education sector can continue to work towards better understanding the faculty’s perspectives of health sciences education during times of unprecedented challenges.