Future Trends in PA Education Volume 2: Hybrid Education and the Hybrid Workforce
In our previous newsletter, I began this series on the direction I see PA education, and in fact, the PA profession, heading in the next decade. My first prediction was that competency-based learning and the hybrid classroom will become prominent methods of teaching our students. Today I want to explore this topic further, discussing how a hybrid classroom prepares our medical students for the hybrid workforce.
Hybrid education is here to stay
As PA education faces its post-COVID future, hybrid education will remain in programs that have embraced it, spread across existing programs, and be a consideration (and likely a solid part) of the design and development of new programs seeking provisional accreditation.
Evidence supporting hybrid PA education expands beyond the anecdotal stories told by programs persisting through the 2020-21 pandemic in the form of existing distance and hybrid programs that have provided proof of the concept.
Additionally, programs considering hybrid instruction are unlikely to provide their students’ first encounter with this type of learning, as the number of students engaging in online education even before the pandemic was increasing (Babson Survey Research Group, 2015). Other recent data indicates that distance education and the numbers of students engaged in a mix of distance and non-distance courses have also been increasing (Allen & Seaman, 2017).
The hybrid future of medicine
The ubiquity of telemedicine and the use of technology in providing continuing professional development for health care practitioners supports the value of teaching using these same tools.
Telemedicine and virtual healthcare are here, and their use will expand exponentially in the future. Students who have learned in a virtual environment will be well-equipped to interact easily with the paradigm shift of treating patients in-person and online, and the many benefits offered by doing so.
Forbes.com defines the difference between telemedicine and virtual care this way: telemedicine is done “in place of” a doctor’s visit (such as via a Zoom call), whereas virtual care may involve telemedicine appointments but also includes a broad scope of online or app services that monitor and manage healthcare. With virtual care, patients have agency as active participants in their care plan. Virtual care also improves access to care.
When medical education is conducted online, its students get:
- Access to more learning tools. This includes becoming familiar with apps and programs that they will use in future jobs.
- Access to up-to-date information. The medical field operates best with the most current information possible, not only of patient information but statutes and regulations.
- Practice that doesn’t require live patients (or cadavers). Now medical professionals can practice easily on virtually simulated patients, which eliminates a world of ethical dilemmas and promotes safety. Gamified learning and immersive learning are effective throughout education and career.
- Increased interaction around the world. This speaks for itself. Borders and distances can disappear with online communication.
(Via “Future Doctors and Online Learning” July 8, 2022 at trainingindustry.com)
Rationales behind hybrid learning
The decision to seek accreditation of a hybrid PA program at a university is based on several strategic goals of the school and the university. Specifically, these strategic goals include: advancing educational excellence through innovative and best practices; increasing access to the academic programming offered by the institution; further diversifying students, staff, and faculty populations; and building infrastructure by adding new technologies, programming, partnerships, and expertise to the university’s pool of resources.
Hybrid PA education allows for the integration of multiple instructional methodologies, especially technological resources, as instructors guide learners toward competence and meeting program outcomes. Removing the geographic consideration that may affect student decisions on if or where to pursue their academic goals, the hybrid program increases accessibility to education and allows individuals to remain in their home communities for much, if not all, of the program. It is expected that this will positively impact recruitment of individuals who are not interested in relocating and adapting to a new community.
Finally, a hybrid program adds to the diversity of resources of the program as new faculty and staff develop and integrate new technologies and processes into their practices.
Next time…
Join me again for the next newsletter. Then, I will present an idea for a Hybrid PA Educational design.
