Virtual medical education accreditation survey visits and viability for the future

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) drastically disrupted daily life and abruptly forced curricular modifications in undergraduate medical education. Despite level of preparedness, medical schools moved instruction online for students to access remotely. Similarly, accreditation visits by the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME) were also moved from in-person to virtual formats during these chaotic times. Little guidance was available to transition to the new process. Medical schools that were scheduled for a virtual survey visit were required to pivot without tried experience on how to prepare for and conduct these high stakes online visits. New processes needed to be developed to successfully navigate a virtual accreditation visit. To date, there has been nothing in the literature from those who have participated on LCME teams nor from medical schools who have undergone a virtual survey visit. This article accounts for one medical school’s experience from its 2021 LCME virtual visit and makes recommendations to consider when planning for such a significant event. The future of virtual visits is taken into account as this method has its benefits including elimination of travel and the associated time and cost. Yet, the perspectives from others who have participated in a virtual LCME accreditation visit should be studied. While the LCME will return to in-person visits in 2022-23, it is important for medical schools to share their experiences and lessons learned from their virtual accreditation visit should the need arise to reinstate virtual visits in the future.