Abstract
BackgroundDigital teaching in medical education has grown in popularity in the recent years. However, to the best of our knowledge, no bibliometric report to date has been published that analyzes this important literature set to reveal prevailing topics and trends and their impacts reflected in citation counts.ObjectiveWe used a bibliometric approach to unveil and evaluate the scientific literature on digital teaching research in medical education, demonstrating recurring research topics, productive authors, research organizations, countries, and journals. We further aimed to discuss some of the topics and findings reported by specific highly cited works.MethodsThe Web of Science electronic database was searched to identify relevant papers on digital teaching research in medical education. Basic bibliographic data were obtained by the “Analyze” and “Create Citation Report” functions of the database. Complete bibliographic data were exported to VOSviewer for further analyses. Visualization maps were generated to display the recurring author keywords and terms mentioned in the titles and abstracts of the publications.ResultsThe analysis was based on data from 3978 papers that were identified. The literature received worldwide contributions with the most productive countries being the United States and United Kingdom. Reviews were significantly more cited, but the citations between open access vs non–open access papers did not significantly differ. Some themes were cited more often, reflected by terms such as virtual reality, innovation, trial, effectiveness, and anatomy. Different aspects in medical education were experimented for digital teaching, such as gross anatomy education, histology, complementary medicine, medicinal chemistry, and basic life support. Some studies have shown that digital teaching could increase learning satisfaction, knowledge gain, and even cost-effectiveness. More studies were conducted on trainees than on undergraduate students.ConclusionsDigital teaching in medical education is expected to flourish in the future, especially during this era of COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlights
Rapid advancements in information technology and worldwide internet access potentially allow for the full substitution of traditional face-to-face medical education with digital teaching methods
Different aspects in medical education were experimented for digital teaching, such as gross anatomy education, histology, complementary medicine, medicinal chemistry, and basic life support
Some studies have shown that digital teaching could increase learning satisfaction, knowledge gain, and even cost-effectiveness
Summary
Rapid advancements in information technology and worldwide internet access potentially allow for the full substitution of traditional face-to-face medical education with digital teaching methods (including but not limited to remote teaching). Similar to traditional face-to-face teaching, digital teaching needs to be approached from various perspectives, such as achieving competency in pedagogical, technological, and content knowledge [3]. Digital teaching in medical education shares similarities with other educational areas as it enhances self-directed learning and computer literacy skills. It follows its own specific aims, such as to enhance collaboration skills, problem solving skills, critical thinking, and filling the gap between theory and practice [15]. To the best of our knowledge, no bibliometric report to date has been published that analyzes this important literature set to reveal prevailing topics and trends and their impacts reflected in citation counts
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