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Received : 05-12-2020

Accepted : 07-12-2020



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Get Permission Sahoo: Communication training for undergraduate medical students through a real time online role-play during Covid-19 lockdown period

What problem was addressed? 

The unusual Lockdown as a result of Covid-19 pandemic has its troll in clinical teaching learning activities of health professional courses. Although institutions adopt various virtual platforms to instil clinical knowledge, but training of other soft skills remains challenging during unusual social distancing period as witnessed because of Covid-19. We tried to engage students at real time online Role-Play as a part of training communication skills.

What was tried? 

We tried to train real time online Role Play by undergraduate medical students. We used the Zoom online meeting platform to perform the session in real time. We used inducing reasoning technique to develop the students’ skills at finding patterns, creating new rules, and explaining phenomena. The students were divided in group of 2-3 & theme of certain scenarios along with guidelines were given 4 days prior. The groups wrote their respective skit. They used Role-reversal technique between their presentations, so that everyone has chance to play as a doctor at least once. Real time feedback was given by peers & faculty apart from the self-assessment by presenter groups.1

What lessons were learned? 

Although virtual, yet through this role-play, learning took place through identification with a character in a social context. It could provide an opportunity for rehearsing new skills & generating new insights through online act during such a difficult social distancing time, the world is facing because of Covid-19. All these could promote empathy, contextual understanding & more so integrating thinking to feeling, which would lead to more productive learning during their practice. The lateral benefit of this experience was the promotion of telemedicine counselling & creativity the 21st century learners often fond of.

References

1 

S Wills E Rosser E Devonshire E Leigh C Russell J Shepherd Encouraging role based online learning environments by building, linking, understanding, extending: the BLUE report. Australian Learning and Teaching Council2009



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