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Volume 18 (1)
Volume 18, Issue 1, Winter 1998
J Contin Educ Health Prof 1998; 18(1):11-19
ORIGINAL ARTICLES
Assessment of the Acceptability and Costs of Interactive Videoconferencing for Continuing Medical Education in Nova Scotia
D. B. Langille, MD
J. M. Sargeant, MEd
M. J. Allen, MD
A b s t r a c t
We carried out continuing medical education (CME) using interactive videoconferencing
to four communities in Nova Scotia, two rural and two urban, using room-based
and PC PictureTel technology. Programming was decided upon by the target audience, developed
by members of the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University, and delivered from a
broadcast studio at the University to physicians at their community hospitals. Faculty were
provided support for their introduction to this medium in the form of a 1-hour training session.
Each community received approximately 12 hours of CME. Participating physicians and
faculty were enthusiastic in their responses to their involvement in CME programming. Program
content was highly evaluated by almost all participants, and 72% felt that the format was as
effective as face-to-face CME. Difficulties included those related to the technological aspects
of programming, with participants agreeing only 65% of the time and faculty agreeing 70%
of the time that the picture quality was satisfactory. Faculty were more critical of sound quality,
with only 70% agreeing that this was satisfactory, while 90% of participants felt that it
was satisfactory. Since PC-based units were able to operate with only two Centrix lines at 112
kilobits per second, and since these sites operated simultaneously with others, limiting bandwidth
for all participants, these difficulties are amenable to technological improvement. Focus
group analysis found that removal of barriers to attendance at traditional CME, particularly
lost time from practice and family and distance to travel, was valued. This was most marked
for rural physicians.
Keywords: Continuing Medical Education; Feasibility; Videoconferencing
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