MEDICAL STUDENTS PERSPECTIVE ON THE TEACHINGPROCESS OF RADIOLOGY DURING AND AFTER THECOVID-19 PANDEMIC

Background: Over the last few years, radiology teaching and training have transformed from traditional lectures to early team-based clinical learning and case-based teaching.

Objectives: To assess the perspective of undergraduate medical students regarding radiology teaching during and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)pandemic.

Subjects and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate medical students from third year to interns enrolled in Taif University for the academic year 2023-2024. An online, self-administered questionnaire was utilized for data collection. It contains 20 questions divided into three sections: I) general information and students demographic data (4 questions) II) questions related to the students teaching-learning experiences after the COVID-19 pandemic period (8 questions) and III) questions related to the students teaching-learning experiences in the COVID-19 pandemic period (8 questions).

Results: A total of 204 students were included in the study. They were equally distributed according to their gender and almost equally distributed according to their academic year. The majority (86.3%) of them used tablets as the primary device for e-learning during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Significant improvements were observed in the perspective of the participants regarding the quality of on-site radiology teaching (p<0.001), their performance in on-site radiologyteaching (p=0.007), and thoughts related to radiology teaching via e-learning (p=0.023) after the COVID-19 pandemic compared to it during the pandemic.

Conclusion:Medical students generally view radiology education positively after the pandemic. However, improvements in the structures and assessments of both online and onsite radiology teaching are needed. Interestingly, female students found e-learning and assessments more valuable, while older students appreciated the overall structure more.