EURURO-6646; No. of Pages 2 EUROPEAN UROLOGY XXX (2016) XXX–XXX

available at www.sciencedirect.com journal homepage: www.europeanurology.com

Research Letter

Lifelong Learning in Practice: The Age of Discussion Through Social Media Reza Sari-Motlagh a, Sina Ebrahimi b, Abolghasem Nikfallah a, Sakineh Hajebrahimi c, Behnam Shakiba d,* Ongoing lifelong learning in health-related professions is recognized as one of the most important essential competencies for optimal clinical practice [1]. Continuing medical education (CME) in lifelong learning for physicians focuses on maintaining or upgrading the knowledge and skills of medical graduates to ensure competent practice [2]. The goal of current CME systems for urologists is to improve knowledge and practical skills via formats such as conferences, formal courses, and workshops [3]. In recent years, technological improvements that have shifted education from classrooms to online platforms have significantly changed medical education [4]. Social media have become a valuable tool for e-learning, particularly when incorporated in medical education and clinical practice [5]. To facilitate lifelong learning for urologists, we established two Telegram ‘‘Urologist’’ groups in September 2014. Telegram is a communication application similar to Viber and Whatsapp that allows users to send texts, images, and videos to a contact list. To achieve the goals mentioned above, we used different medical education strategies, including case-based learning, clinical experience, discussion groups, lectures, evidence-based journal clubs, and problem-based learning. Besides the main priority of continuing education, this approach aims to establish an effective consultation system, especially for young urologists, for discussing complex or unusual cases with expert colleagues. Between November 2014 and November 2015, the Telegram urologist groups involved 256 case-based learning discussions, 20 clinical experiences, 12 lectures, and 24 evidence-based journal clubs. Approximately 1180 cases were discussed in this period of time and membership increased from 35 to 408.

Telegram groups are an exceptionally easy tool that urologists can use to connect to invaluable resources for which access might otherwise be limited by geographic distance or time barriers [5]. This e-learning tool may be useful in improving clinical knowledge and narrowing the gap between high-quality evidence and clinical practice in developing countries such as Iran. Despite these opportunities, medical education via social media has certain limitations that must be acknowledged. First, the effect of this educational system on clinical skills is unclear, especially for surgical skills in urology. Second, there are still some concerns regarding medical ethics and patient privacy and confidentiality in such programs. Conflicts of interest: The authors have nothing to disclose.

References [1] Davis D, O’Brien MA, Freemantle N, Wolf FM, Mazmanian P, Taylor-Vaisey A. Impact of formal continuing medical education: do conferences, workshops, rounds, and other traditional continuing education activities change physician behavior or health care outcomes? JAMA 1999;282:867–74. [2] American Medical Association. Physician’s recognition award and credit system. 2010: page 2. www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/ education-careers/continuing-medical-education/ physicians-recognition-award-credit-system.page? [3] Ahmed K, Wang TT, Ashrafian H, Layer GT, Darzi A, Athanasiou T. The effectiveness of continuing medical education for specialist recertification. Can Urol Assoc J 2013;7:266–72. [4] Farzianpour F, Emami AH, Eshraghian MR. The satisfaction of medical practitioners from continuing medical education program of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Iran Red Crescent Med J 2009;11:371–6. [5] Cheston CC, Flickinger TE, Chisolm MS. Social media use in medical education: a systematic review. Acad Med 2013;88:893–901.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eururo.2016.01.046 0302-2838/# 2016 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Sari-Motlagh R, et al. Lifelong Learning in Practice: The Age of Discussion Through Social Media. Eur Urol (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eururo.2016.01.046

EURURO-6646; No. of Pages 2 2

a

EUROPEAN UROLOGY XXX (2016) XXX–XXX

Brain & Spinal Injury Research Center, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran

d

Students’ Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences,

University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Tehran, Iran

Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

E-mail address: [email protected] (B. Shakiba)

b c

Iranian Evidence-based Medicine Center of Excellence, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran

January 22, 2016

Please cite this article in press as: Sari-Motlagh R, et al. Lifelong Learning in Practice: The Age of Discussion Through Social Media. Eur Urol (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eururo.2016.01.046

Lifelong Learning in Practice: The Age of Discussion Through Social Media.

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