Background Despite growing interest in artificial intelligence (AI) in health professions education, qualitative evidence for integarting AI-supported instructional redesign on teaching practices and students' experiences in undergraduate dental education remains limited. The aim of this study was to explore the educational impact of AI-supported instructional redesign of lessons in undergraduate dental education.Methods We conducted this inductive qualitative thematic analysis in an undergraduate dental education setting. Existing lessons were redesigned using AI-supported recommendations to strengthen alignment between learning objectives, authentic clinical contexts, and expected clinical outcomes. Data were collected through classroom observations and students’ focus group discussions. An inductive thematic analysis was performed, and findings from multiple data sources were curated, collecetd, and triangulated to enhance credibility.Results AI-supported instructional redesign transformed teaching by promoting authentic clinical scenarios, clinically oriented discussions, and explicit reasoning activities. Thematic analysis identified four interconnected themes: (1) a shift from teacher-centred knowledge delivery to facilitation of clinical reasoning; (2) transformation from passive attendance to active cognitive engagement; (3) building clinical meaning through authentic clinical contexts and collaborative dialogue; and (4) creating conditions for professional learning through psychological safety. AI functioned as a pedagogical design-support tool rather than replacing the educators’ instructional role. Overall, the observed educational changes appeared to arise primarily from the pedagogical redesign enabled by AI-supported planning rather than from students' direct interaction with AI.Conclusion This study endorses the role of AI-supported instructional redesign in enriching the existing undergraduate dental curriculum. This approach can potentially help educators align learning objectives, instructional strategies, and authentic clinical contexts. The reported educational modifications reflect primarily the implementation of learner-centred and clinically oriented pedagogical strategies, with AI functioning as a design-support mechanism rather than as a direct instructional agent.
Background Research studying health professions' student attrition and academic difficulties generally treat these outcomes as dichotomous variables that obscure important time-varying aspects. Scant attention has been paid to incorporating time-varying methods, such as survival analysis, to model attrition and academic difficulties in health professions trainees.Objective The objectives of this study are to (1) identify when students were most likely to attrit from the program and/or experience academic probation and (2) identify predictors of time to attrition and academic probation using undergraduate student performance metrics.Design Using a database of physician associate (PA) student admissions variables and academic performance, we examined the relationship between time-to-attrition and time-to-first-probation using semi-parametric multivariable Cox Proportional Hazards models. Results are presented in adjusted Hazards Ratios (HR) with 95% Confidence Intervals (CI).Results The rate at which students experienced at least one probation event was 131 per 19,563.5 person-weeks. The rate of students who experienced an attrition event was 32 per 22,210 person-weeks. Overall GPA (aHR = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.08–0.33), verbal GRE scores (aHR = 0.91, 95% CI = 0.87–0.94), having a science major in undergraduate studies (aHR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.26–0.69) and number of undergraduate course withdrawals (aHR = 1.14, 95% CI = 1.05–1.24) were associated with time to first probation. Verbal GRE scores (aHR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.80–0.94) and number of undergraduate course withdrawals (aHR = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.08–1.43) were associated with time to attrition.Conclusions We employed a novel application of survival analysis to predict PA school attrition and academic probation using an entire cohort of students. Our work informs admissions policies by identifying students at-risk of academic probation and attrition who may need more academic support prior to program matriculation.
The pandemic showed the potential of existing telehealth to increase healthcare access but also the need for healthcare workers to be competent and skilled in delivering care through this modality. We undertook a systematic literature review to identify telehealth-related courses developed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and summarised study characteristics, learning objectives, and course content. Articles describing telehealth-related training and education programs implemented between 2020 and 2024 were included. Papers were required to list specific program content or learning objectives for any educational level or type of health professional. Two authors independently extracted data. Quality of articles was assessed against the SQUIRE 2.0 guidelines. Quantitative data was summarised and reported using frequencies and percentages, learning objectives were mapped across the six Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) telehealth competency domains, and qualitative categories were thematically synthesised. Of 7547 articles identified, 51 were included. Most courses were implemented in the USA (82%), mostly targeted to undergraduate students (51%), and the number of articles per year increased over time. Most courses were developed by universities (53%), sometimes in collaboration with health services, and content was primarily applicable across multiple specialties. Participants nearly always evaluated the courses (90%). Content included basic knowledge and skills in telehealth, patient safety, and ethics, with learning objectives often on technology and communication. Only four programs included all AAMC telehealth competencies. This review highlights that telehealth education and training has expanded since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, current curricula are lacking experiential learning. Courses generally covered telehealth communication competencies in detail, but more content on the ethical and legal requirements, billing, physical examination, patient education, and eligibility for telehealth is required. For efficient resource use, standardised training can be applied across disciplines with addition of site or speciality-specific modules.
Background Medical education has been marked in the last decades by the introduction of Competence-Based Medical Education (CBME). Despite its clear objectives, CBME has faced significant challenges and Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) have been conceptualised as an answer to some of those challenges.Aims/Purposes This systematic review aimed primarily to summarise the evidence published on the strategies used for the development, implementation, and assessment of EPAs and their results. Secondarily this review also aimed to characterise the body of evidence produced on EPAs, assess its quality, and explore its limitations and future research paths.Methods Systematic searches were conducted in six electronic databases in July 2021 and updated in March 2025. The data extracted included the quality assessment of the studies considered using the Quality Assessment Tool for Studies with Diverse Designs (QATSDD).Results Four hundred and seventy-eight studies were included for data extraction and posterior analysis, most of which referred to Postgraduate programmes (59.6%, n = 285) and took place in the USA (51.5%, n = 246). A relevant diversity of methodologies and stakeholders involved was detected in the development, implementation, and assessment of EPAs. References to factors influencing the implementation of EPAs (50.8%, n = 243) and the potential of implementing EPAs for the improvement of learning and assessment practices (46.4%, n = 222) were found in a significant number of studies, but only a small number focused on the cost-effectiveness of the use of EPAs. The quality analysis of the included studies revealed modest results.Conclusions This broad systematic review highlights the increasing adoption of EPAs, showcasing the diversity of contexts and strategies for the development, implementation, and assessment of EPAs. Nevertheless, significant challenges persist, namely concerning study quality, warranting further research.
