Necessity is the mother of invention. The medical field is no exception. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the looming healthcare education shortages have already made it clear that online resources are one promising way forward. However, the ongoing COVID-19 uncertainties have shown the opportunities of digital education to an extent never reached before. The scientific community as well as healthcare organizations and providers have significantly benefited from digital education innovations, especially also in the fight against the virus.

To meet the needs for reliable, up-to-date care information, faculty members at the Johns Hopkins Department of Emergency Medicine have developed a number of interactive COVID-19 clinical cases in collaboration with Lecturio. These cases teach students and medical practitioners how to care for patients infected by COVID-19.

“There are all sorts of people providing care for COVID patients. But many didn’t understand the nuances of how to treat them differently from your average flu. There were no vaccines at the beginning, so we had to deal with protecting healthcare providers as well as with finding key therapeutic measures that were uniquely different,” says Dr. Peter Horneffer, Director of Medical Education at Lecturio. “We had to produce something quickly and effectively. But we had already been active in the field of interactive learning and we knew how effective it can be.”

The outcome of the Johns Hopkins-Lecturio collaboration has now been recognized by the World Health Organization’s Regional Office for Africa. The WHO has listed the clinical cases developed by Lecturio as an innovation that has strengthened the global response to the pandemic. “We produced an open source global COVID-19 educational product. And it was wonderful that the WHO recognized the power behind these interactive exercises,” said Horneffer.

Because COVID-19 knowledge is evolving rapidly, the cases have gotten updates and an additional round of new cases with further therapeutic approaches is currently in the works. This should help address the needs of doctors and nurses who lack access to advanced technology or who may be treating patients in remote clinics or even outside of hospital settings. 

Lecturio currently has five interactive cases available, covering topics ranging from Hypoxia Management in Ventilated Patients, to Airway Considerations, to Cardiac Arrest Management. Additional free COVID-19 resources from Lecturio include an in-depth concept page, which details the etiology, transmission, epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnostics, management, and prevention of COVID-19; a video course on the overview and management of the disease; a second concept page detailing the complications of COVID-19; as well as tips for studying at home.