Keywords

Cutaneous Surgery, Distanced Learning, General Dermatology, Recording Surgical Procedures, Virtual Teaching

 

Authors

  1. Young, Peter A.
  2. Bae, Gordon H.

Abstract

ABSTRACT: As the COVID-19 pandemic smolders on, learners in medicine continue to face significant barriers to accruing essential clinical exposure because of social distancing, preceptor availability, and fluctuating patient volumes. The smartphone hanger represents a free and easily accessible means of rapidly disseminating high-quality, The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996-compliant skills tutorials during a time when learner access to in-person hands-on dermatology mentorship is unpredictable and less available.

 

Article Content

CLINICAL CHALLENGE

As the COVID-19 pandemic smolders on, learners in medicine continue to face significant barriers to accruing essential clinical exposure because of social distancing, preceptor availability, and fluctuating patient volumes. Clinical educators must innovate to continue demonstrating hands-on skills in the most efficient, easily accessible manner. Various apparatuses have been utilized to record video of hands-on procedural skills for teaching, but these can be cumbersome and expensive and do not enable the demonstrator to confirm and adjust proper framing in real time, hands-free.

 

SOLUTION

The smartphone hanger is a comfortable, simple, easily sanitized tool for recording hands-on skills (Figures 1 and 2); it can be made from a wire lab coat hanger in under 15 minutes (Video 1, https://journals.lww.com/jdnaonline/pages/videogallery.aspx?autoPlay=false&video). It puts the clinician in complete control of desired video framing in real time without obstructing the wearer's view and keeps the assistant free of additional recording-related tasks. The clinician may take photographs or start and stop video recording without breaking sterile technique by using voice commands. All modern smartphones feature free video editing software that enables the demonstrator to record voice-overs, add captions, and remove patient privacy-sensitive portions as needed. The quality of the end product is sufficient for acceptance into a peer-reviewed journal (Young & Zumwalt, 2022).

  
Figure 1 - Click to enlarge in new windowFIGURE 1. The smartphone hanger is lightweight, comfortable, and easily sanitized.
 
Figure 2 - Click to enlarge in new windowFIGURE 2. The clinician's view while using the smartphone hanger. The device allows direct unobstructed view of the wearer's hands while still enabling the clinician to confirm desired video capture and adjust posture as needed for proper framing.

The smartphone hanger represents a free and easily accessible means of rapidly disseminating high-quality, The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996-compliant skills tutorials during a time when learner access to in-person hands-on dermatology mentorship is unpredictable.

 

REFERENCE

 

Young P. A., Zumwalt J. R. (2022). The Loma Linda loop: A closure technique for high tension wounds. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 86, e45-e46. [Context Link]