Medical Students on the Virtual Front Line: A Literature Review Elective to Provide COVID-19 Clinical Teams With Essential Information

Jeffrey R Boscamp; Christopher P Duffy; Carol Barsky; Bonita F Stanton

doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000004070

Medical Students on the Virtual Front Line: A Literature Review Elective to Provide COVID-19 Clinical Teams With Essential Information

Acad Med. 2021 Jul 1;96(7):1002-1004. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004070.

Authors

Jeffrey R Boscamp¹, Christopher P Duffy², Carol Barsky³, Bonita F Stanton⁴

Affiliations

¹ J.R. Boscamp is vice dean and professor of pediatrics, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Nutley, New Jersey.
² C.P. Duffy is associate dean of the Interprofessional Health Sciences Library, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine and Seton Hall University, Nutley, New Jersey.
³ C. Barsky is executive vice president and chief quality officer, Hackensack Meridian Health, Edison, New Jersey, and professor of emergency medicine, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Nutley, New Jersey.
⁴ B.F. Stanton is founding dean and professor of pediatrics, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Nutley, New Jersey.

PMID: 33735132
DOI: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004070

Abstract

Problem: At the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine (HMSOM) in New Jersey, clinical activities for students were suspended on March 15, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinical teams at Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH) needed resources for identifying and assimilating the medical literature regarding COVID-19, which was expanding and evolving daily. HMH leaders reached out to HMSOM leaders for assistance. The HMSOM leadership and faculty quickly organized a literature review elective.

Approach: Eight second-year medical students participated in a literature review elective course to research and synthesize the COVID-19 clinical literature to provide synopses of best practices for various clinical teams. By March 23, students were searching the literature and writing reports independently, mentored by a senior dean (an infectious diseases specialist) and supported by the associate dean of libraries and library team. The library team updated and categorized student reports daily on a website dedicated to the elective.

Outcomes: During the 6-week elective, 8 students produced 70 reports synthesizing the emerging COVID-19 literature to help answer practitioners' clinical questions in real time. One student report was posted on the American Academy of Ophthalmology website. All 70 were published online in Elsevier's health education faculty hub. On course evaluations, students expressed regret about not being directly involved in patient care but articulated their gratitude to be able to contribute to the clinical teams.

Next steps: In June 2020, the students returned to their clinical clerkships as COVID-19 clinical volumes declined and personal protective equipment became more available. Students continued to be available to the clinical teams to assist with COVID-19 questions. This literature review elective can serve as a model for other medical schools to use to deploy students to help synthesize the evolving literature on COVID-19 or other rapidly emerging research topics.

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / diagnosis
COVID-19* / therapy
Curriculum
Education, Distance / methods*
Education, Medical, Undergraduate / methods*
Evidence-Based Practice / education*
Evidence-Based Practice / methods
Humans
New Jersey
Review Literature as Topic*