Little time, high pressure and yet always being up to date – that is the reality in healthcare. Through digitalization, e-learning offers new opportunities for practices and clinics! In this article, you will learn how e-learning in medicine helps to solve the specific challenges in healthcare.
Since the beginning of the Corona pandemic, it has become clear: Digital further education is needed in all industries! Especially in professions where time is often short and pressure is high, further education must be as flexible and straightforward as possible. The simple solution: e-learning.
What you should know about e-learning in companies has been clearly summarized on our new information page "E-Learning in Companies":
Challenges in Healthcare
Healthcare is particularly faced with numerous challenges:
The b budgets are tight. Especially hospitals face immense cost pressures due to increasing privatization.
Despite the abundant workload, there is a chronic staff shortage in almost all medical fields.
At the same time, the knowledge of the existing healthcare staff must be kept up to date, making further education increasingly important.
These must be flexible and time-efficient for employees and cost hospitals or practices as little time and money as possible.
But how are doctors, nurses, and therapists supposed to manage working AND learning in their limited time? E-learning can help particularly in medicine, but it is still used too infrequently. How the implementation of e-learning in healthcare succeeds and what you should pay attention to now follows:
That’s why E-Learning in Medicine is so Important
In the healthcare industry, e-learning is used for both training and ongoing education as well as in everyday work life. In addition to classic training purposes, e-learning is now increasingly used in the daily operations of practices, therapy facilities, hospitals, and health insurance companies.
Mindmap: Where the use of E-Learning in Healthcare is worthwhile // Illustration: blink.it
And there’s a good reason for this! Like in other areas, e-learning brings several advantages:
Digital further education in online courses is not only more cost-effective for employers.
E-learning also offers participants temporal and spatial flexibility,
takes into account different learning preferences of the participants and
is also much more fun than a purely face-to-face training.
In the end, you can make even dry topics clear and motivating.
Areas of Application for E-Learning in Healthcare
E-learning is not the same as e-learning, as we have now explained: E-learning is an umbrella term for various methods and areas of application. Even in medicine, the possibilities for e-learning vary greatly:
E-learning in onboarding or training of new employees
E-learning for training of the staff
E-learning for quality assurance of competencies and workflows
E-learning as a facilitation in everyday work
An e-learning course is particularly well-suited for explaining workflows, structures, and rules. E-learning is also a suitable method for conveying knowledge in the introduction of new therapy options, the operation of technical devices, and other theoretical topics.
Many companies also use e-learning for regular verification of health training or other important qualifications. It can also help simplify workflows, e.g., by allowing patients to read all important information in a special online course before treatment and prepare themselves for their care.
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E-Learning only for doctors, nurses, and staff?
E-learning offers diverse possibilities in medicine to simplify everyday work and training in healthcare – for both patients and staff:
E-learning for doctors and nurses
E-learning in the training of healthcare personnel
Excursion: E-learning for patients in the healthcare sector
E-Learning for Doctors and Nurses
Medical staff must be kept up to date regarding new treatment methods and technical advancements. However, there is often too little time for that in the stressful hospital routine.
A good example is the current Corona pandemic: In early 2020, many hospitals and staff had to react quickly and learn how to handle the new situation, identify symptoms, and properly care for Corona patients – all under immense time pressure! Medical professionals and nurses had to be informed of the latest developments at all times to ensure medical care could be provided. The exchange and communication of current developments was particularly crucial – and simultaneously a significant challenge in the stressful hospital environment.
When hospitals rely on e-learning in such moments, they can conveniently inform all staff about the latest developments online and ensure that each employee actually receives the information. Online content can be processed by anyone at a time that suits them best. Thus, learning can be flexibly integrated into the hectic hospital routine. In e-learning, employees can also exchange experiences with each other, discuss in the comments under contributions, and share testimonials when an appropriate learning tool is chosen.
E-Learning in the Training of Healthcare Personnel
Not only in the hospital or practice, e-learning is suitable for the further education of employees. E-learning is also a good option for training nurses, therapists, and doctors to pass on knowledge. To facilitate the transition from theoretical training in school and university to practical hospital and practice life, e-learning is the optimal companion. Typical digital teaching offerings in medical education include, according to Springer, the following:
Classic media and learning tools for providing content, such as digital texts, emails, and databases
Social communication tools for exchange, such as forums, chats, or comment functions
Electronic examination systems, such as e-exams or final tests and quizzes in the online course
Audio- and video-based media for guidance or tutorials, such as podcasts or screencasts
Interactive tools, such as serious games, role plays, subject-specific interactive tools, and simulations
The hospital routine is often stressful, and many employees have little time to calmly guide new recruits through the individual departments or explain specific processes. Even here, e-learning is a suitable option for bundling all information into one course. This way, newcomers can check for answers in the online course themselves if they have questions or find out to whom they can turn and are not overwhelmed by the multitude of new impressions.
Medical staff primarily learns theoretical knowledge during training and does not always have the opportunity to look over the shoulder of an experienced colleague. Videos in e-learning create this practical relevance on a small scale. For example, doctors can film an operation or simulate a typical ward round with a colleague. This way, trainees immediately gain an insight into what to expect.
Reading Tip: You can find more about onboarding apprentices in this article: The trainees are coming! How to make onboarding simple & time-saving
Example of medical explanatory videos in e-learning // Source: Smedex, YouTube
Excursion: E-Learning for Patients in Medicine
E-learning is suitable in healthcare not only for professionals and their training. There are also many offerings for the patients themselves.
Some health insurance companies already offer certain e-learnings for informational purposes to their customers, provide free online courses on topics, and digitally inform them about services. Some funds also offer digital therapy options and preventative e-learnings on topics such as relaxation, sports, nutrition, or mental health. The offerings range from online therapies to sleep training to various digital yoga and sports courses, and are usually free for members.
In hospitals, there are opportunities to explain all important information thoroughly in the online course before surgery or another procedure. This way, the treating physician can demonstrate in a video what exactly will be done and what the patient should pay attention to. In such courses, the patient can also be supported and accompanied after treatment or procedure, for example, preventatively addressing current health issues such as diabetes or poor nutrition. Any further questions and uncertainties can be discussed in a subsequent appointment. This alleviates many fears for the patient, who feels well-informed, and frees up doctor and staff in their working hours.
There are many possibilities to use e-learning in healthcare – the recently mentioned are, of course, only a small excerpt of the most common areas of application!
E-Learning in Medicine: What You Should Pay Attention To
It has already been clarified that e-learning is suitable for use in hospitals and practices and especially offers numerous advantages for the staff. Nevertheless, there are certain challenges and peculiarities that you should consider when using e-learning in medicine:
| Challenges in Healthcare | Solutions thanks to E-Learning | Example: blink.it Learning platform || ------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- || Learning despite time constraints in everyday life | Flexible online courses with various short contents that can be processed anytime & anywhere. | blink.it offers a wide selection of media and is accessible at any time in the browser without installation on all devices. || Lack of practical relevance | Integrate more case studies, simulations & virtual patients in the form of videos or diagrams. | With blink.it, you can easily incorporate your own videos or also external learning content into your online courses. || Extensive theory | Varied course design to keep motivation high even for rather dry and theoretical topics. | blink.it itself offers various media for designing courses and additionally allows the integration of external content, e.g., via SCORM. || Regular mandatory training | Knowledge assessments such as mandatory training can be implemented directly in the online course using various quizzes. | blink.it offers options to conduct tests and quizzes directly in the course and to document passing with a certificate. || Security of health data | Secure data of patients and staff is ensured when the servers are located in Europe and comply with German data protection regulations. | The blink.it servers are located in Germany, ensuring that all data protection regulations for Germany are adhered to and sensitive health data is securely handled. |
No matter how you want to use e-learning in medicine: In any case, you need a suitable e-learning platform that is easy to use and accessible easily and everywhere for both staff and patients.
We have found that blink.it is perfect for the requirements in the healthcare sector. Do you want to test whether the learning platform is also suitable for your purposes? Then book a non-binding demo now and check out in the free online course how such an online course can look! Have fun!
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