Can distance learning provide comparable and more equitable education for future neurosurgeons?

Increasing specialization of medicine means fewer medical students enter general medicine/surgery internships while more transition directly into postgraduate training programs of their specialty (i.e. neurosurgery). This has led to an increasing knowledge gap between medical students

 and postgraduate training. Extracurricular training intended to address this knowledge gap has created a disparity among students pursuing careers in neurosurgery, giving significant advantage to students with economic means to travel and those with neurosurgery departments within their school.​

​The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in cancellation of all pre-existing neurosurgical training for students - a
significant step backwards. However, expansion of distance learning, onset by the pandemic, may prove to be a golden opportunity to redevelop neurosurgery education with less of a disparity gap. The investigators hypothesize that distance learning is, at least, comparable to traditional methods in effectiveness and provides a more equitable training path to a career in neurosurgery. The proposed case-control study will compare assessment scores across the learning period and utilize survey data to characterize the success and impact of distance learning. This study will help guide national directions in medical education aiming to decrease training disparities among future doctors through effective distance learning.

Investigators
Susan C. Pannullo, MD; Jeffrey P. Greenfield, MD, PhD; Ryan E. Radwanski, MD; Iyan Younus, MD; Graham Winston, MD

Project Start: April 1, 2020
Project End: June 9, 2021

Associated Institutions
Brain and Spine Group, Inc.
Weill Cornell Medicine Department of Neurological Surgery

Project Funding: Pending