Telehealth as a medical education tool during the COVID-19 pandemic: experience report

Abstract

Abstract: Introduction: The Covid-19 pandemic interrupted and challenged the traditional structure of medical education, based on face-to-face teaching, and, as a measure of support for the efforts of government agencies to reduce the risk of spreading the disease, distance became necessary. medical/patient care and the increase in the supply of telehealth services by health systems. In Brazil, the telehealth model seeks to improve the quality of care in primary health care (PHC), integrating education and service through tele-education and tele-assistance activities, such as teleconsulting, the Second Formative Opinion (SOF), tele-education and telediagnosis. Thus, this article reports the experience of medical students in telehealth actions during the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil, seeking to clarify the contributions and limitations of this experience in the teaching-learning process in the context of medical education. Experience report: Participation in the project allowed the experience of various telehealth activities under the supervision and guidance of professors in the health area, in addition to the production of informative and educational materials. The proposed activities allowed for the improvement of clinical reasoning through evidence-based medicine (EBM), especially in helping teleconsultations and frequently asked questions. Discussion: The use of technologies became indispensable during the pandemic, and, within this scenario, a telehealth project proved to be an important and effective strategy for continuing education among professionals and health education for the community, avoiding crowding and preventing the spread of the virus. In addition, remote actions, such as teleconsultations, resolution of frequently asked questions and tele-education, proved to be an important strategy for accessing health care not only in times of pandemic. Conclusion: Our experience made it possible to foster critical thinking and disseminate content in a safe, technical and evidence-based way. The exercise of clinical reasoning led us to an experience of great value and to believe that the inclusion of the practice of telehealth can bring important gains to the curriculum of Medicine courses.