Body Interact — Exam for Lecturers!

The university lecturers are quite active now, as they’re about to take the exam on the "Usage and Opportunities of Body Interact in Educational Process" within the simulation training for scientific and pedagogical staff of clinical departments that has come to an end. The training was initiated by the Administration of the university in accordance with the Law of Ukraine "On Higher Education" to improve the qualifications of scientific and pedagogical staff of ZSMU.

During the exam, the training participants demonstrate their skills and abilities acquired while working with the Body Interact virtual patient, upon completion they will receive the corresponding certificates.

"More than 260 trainees completed the training," concluded Kateryna Romanova, the Head of the Interdepartmental Training Center. "These are teachers of specialized clinical departments working with the virtual patient program. We were able to fully provide everyone in terms of technical means, since we have 70 scenarios of this program, and each department chose the most necessary one. The classes were conducted via the MS Teams, our equipment allows about a thousand users to simultaneously access the virtual patient, so working simultaneously with 260 training participants was not a problem.

They worked according to the calendar plan. The participants listened to a series of lectures on the use of the latest simulation technologies in distance learning, as well as on the possibilities and application of the Body Interact program during the training of students of various categories. Training participants completed some tasks independently. They used, for example, videos on Pediatrics, Therapy, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Neurology, Surgery, and other fields, where work with the virtual patient program is demonstrated. Such video materials are posted on the university's YouTube channel.

We also held an online conference with participants, where unclear issues were clarified in a Q&A format, and the participants had the opportunity to express their wishes and suggestions regarding modernization and new approaches to mastering work skills in the Body Interact virtual environment. From the feedback of the participants, they liked the training, and most importantly, it will be beneficial for further work with students."

Here are the impressions of the training participants.

Professor Dmytro Lashkul, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Head of the Department of Internal Diseases No. 1 and Simulation Medicine: "Our department has been working with the Body Interact for more than a year, we actively use it in the educational process to improve the practical and theoretical knowledge of our students. This was especially useful during the organization of training during Covid-19. Now, in wartime conditions, when students study remotely, we also actively involve them in this process. Of course, we thank the organizers for the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and improve what we have already acquired. Having such modern technologies in the university, which is not available to every institution of higher medical education, it is necessary to master them in full and teach students. The training will certainly help lecturers to better master modern European clinical protocols and the latest methods of obtaining professional competences. I attended all the training sessions, listened to the lectures offered by the Interdepartmental Training Center, took advantage of two days of self-study, and yesterday it was very interesting to discuss issues related to the application of the Body Interact. Studying will certainly be useful in work."

Associate Professor Oleksandr Demidenko, Candidate of Medical Sciences, Head of the Department of Internal Medicine No. 2: "I attended all training sessions with interest. Everyone is primarily interested in the experience of maximum use of new technologies in the educational process of students. We use the scenarios of the Body interact program for studying the topics in Cardiology, related to acute coronary syndrome, heart rhythm disorders, thromboembolism, hypertensive crisis, and others. There are also interesting therapeutic cases related to bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The lectures were meaningful, valuable information was gleaned from each practical class."

Yuliia Myronchuk, Assistant Professor of the Department of Phthisiology and Pulmonology: "I am working with the virtual patient for the first time, so it is extremely interesting to participate in such a training. The entire department participated, we all have access to the Body Interact at the workplace, and we believe that this technology is the future. We worked with the pneumonia scenario as it is associated with tuberculosis. In the future, we will try this technology out in classes with students, they actively use it during classes in other disciplines, so it is important for all teachers to have a good understanding of the application of the Body Interact. Thank you for the interesting training!"

27 January 2023