Abstract
To support the delivery of the UK’s 100,000 Genomes Project, Health Education England’s Genomics Education Programme developed a suite of resources, including a 3-week Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on whole genome sequencing via the FutureLearn platform. This MOOC is a synchronous learning event, with course educators and mentors (NHS healthcare science trainees in genomics) facilitating the experience in real time. Crucially, the platform allows participants to interact and learn from each other’s experiences. The evaluation of the course was considered from the learners’ and mentors’ perspectives. Perceptions of course relevance were examined through analysis of learner comments made throughout the course and responses to an end-of-course survey. Evaluation of mentors’ experiences focused on how prepared they felt to undertake their role and the value and benefit of their experience. Data was collected through a mixed methods study after the first two runs of the course. Here we present findings from 440 learners who provided end-of-course reflections, 360 learners who completed the post-course survey and 14 mentors who facilitated the course. The course met learners’ needs by providing a greater understanding of whole genome sequencing and the application of this technology in healthcare. Learners also highly valued the engagement with mentors. Mentors appreciated the experience and identified areas of professional development gained through the mentoring experience. Our findings show that a team of specialist healthcare course mentors engaging with a range of different healthcare professional MOOC learners in online conversation can enhance the learners’ experiences and provide a beneficial continuing professional development opportunity for mentors.
Highlights
With the establishment of genomic medicine initiatives around the world the use of genomic information is increasingly being used as part of routine clinical practice (Stark et al, 2019)
Each group had specific motivations for undertaking the course, with healthcare professionals primarily wanting to improve their knowledge of genomics and/or whole genome sequencing (WGS) and increase their awareness of the clinical utility of WGS
The findings from this study suggest using mentors to facilitate Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) may be one avenue to explore as a sustainable approach to the provision of high-quality healthcare continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities, especially where scale is required
Summary
With the establishment of genomic medicine initiatives around the world the use of genomic information is increasingly being used as part of routine clinical practice (Stark et al, 2019). England became one of the first countries to introduce whole genome sequencing (WGS) into an established health system (NHS England 2019b). Health Education England's Genomics Education Programme (GEP) was established to provide the educational support to staff delivering the project (www.genomicseducation.hee.nhs.uk). To prioritize the education and training needs of the workforce, the GEP and key stakeholders undertook an exercise to identify the resources required to support the clinical and scientific activities across the 100,000 Genomes Project pipeline. While most of the resources supported areas specific to the project protocol, others had wider clinical applicability. One of these was a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) 'Whole Genome Sequencing: Decoding the Language of Life and Health' (https:// www.futurelearn.com/courses/whole-genome-sequencing)
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