Angela Treml, Sarita A. Joshi, Laura Dilly Stephens, Nicole D. Zantek, Yvette C. Tanhehco, Holli M. Mason, Yanhua Li, Poyyapakkam Srivaths, Adela D. Mattiazzi, Joseph Schwartz, Gay Wehrli

Apheresis medicine education during the early phase of the COVID‐19 pandemic

  • Hematology
  • Immunology
  • Immunology and Allergy
Save to CiteDrive Show PDF

AbstractBackgroundThe COVID‐19 pandemic introduced challenges and disruption across healthcare, including apheresis medicine (AM). In this study, we report findings from a survey conducted among American Society for Apheresis Physician Committee (ASFA‐PC) members to describe the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on AM education practices.Study design and methodsA voluntary, anonymous, 24‐question, institutional review board‐approved survey regarding AM teaching during the pandemic was distributed to ASFA‐PC members in the United States between December 1, 2020, and December 15, 2020. Descriptive analyses were reported as number and frequency of respondents for each question. Free text responses were summarized.ResultsResponses were received from 14/31 (45%) of ASFA‐PC members, of whom 12 practiced at academic institutions. Among these, 11/12 (92%) transitioned to virtual platform for AM trainee conferences during the pandemic. A variety of resources were employed to support independent AM learning. While 7/12 (58%) respondents did not change the informed consent process for AM procedures, others delegated this process or introduced remote alternatives. The most common method respondents used to conduct AM patient rounding was a hybrid in‐person/virtual model.ConclusionThis survey describes the adaptations and changes AM practitioners made to trainee education in response to the early phase of the COVID‐19 pandemic. The transition to virtual and/or hybrid trainee learning and AM rounds underscores the importance of digital AM resources. Further study of the effects of the pandemic and its impact on AM trainee education, as well as patient care is warranted.

Need a simple solution for managing your BibTeX entries? Explore CiteDrive!

  • Web-based, modern reference management
  • Collaborate and share with fellow researchers
  • Integration with Overleaf
  • Comprehensive BibTeX/BibLaTeX support
  • Save articles and websites directly from your browser
  • Search for new articles from a database of tens of millions of references
Try out CiteDrive

More from our Archive