Thursday 21 May 2020

Online courses in the healthcare industry: educating patients

For healthcare professionals, whether they are hospital staff, medical representatives, or bioscientists developing new medications, online learning courses can provide training and support in several ways. For patients and caregivers too, who are at the other end of the spectrum in the healthcare industry, e-learning has a lot to offer. While all health care organizations have available literature that provides detailed information on the above, patients often cannot perceive or understand them well to make informed decisions. This is where online learning courses can come into play.

A disease of any kind is discouraging for an individual. Due to time constraints, doctors or nurses often cannot sit down with patients and discuss their options with them. Misconceptions and myths about certain diseases also hamper open face-to-face discussion. E-learning courses that enable learning allow both patients and caregivers to collect information at their own pace and in a secure environment.

Various strategies can be used to reassure the student and help him better understand his options. For example, we developed an IVF course for one of India's leading IVF specialists, where the scenarios were built with real-life people, practical problems, DSE Assessor. Students were informed about IVF, various procedures, and their options with the help of these scenarios.

Information and interactivities within an online learning course can prepare patients for the doctor's meeting. This shortens the time spent making them understand mundane needs and can best be used in face-to-face interactions. For example, in a course on a debilitating gastrointestinal disorder, we include clinical forms that patients must complete to receive treatment for the disease. Important parts of the form, such as health care insurance details, details of past treatments, and vaccination history, were highlighted to ensure that patients can produce these details quickly and take the minimum time to complete the forms correctly. .

Perhaps the most important benefit of technology-assisted learning for healthcare patients is that it makes understanding complex procedures possible, even if he or she is a lay person. With e-learning, 2D and 3D graphics and animations can be used to visually recreate complex procedures and break them down into individual steps to aid understanding. Patients have the option to reinforce their understanding by reading the material whenever they need it and by sharing it with family and friends as well.

In addition to information about the disease, treatment options, and procedures, online learning courses can also provide the mental and emotional support that patients and their caregivers need so much. By sharing coping mechanisms, important resources, links and practical ideas that are available to patients and their families at all times, e-courses can provide long-term support. This is especially important if treatment options have a long-term implication for a patient's quality of life.

With the help of technology, we can also create a virtual community of patients and caregivers. Discussion boards, wikis, or blogs can be created inviting patients and their families to share experiences. It can double as a search knowledge repository, where they can search for information and share it more. This will help you better cope with your illness and dispel the sense of alienation that often accompanies illness.

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