WHATSAPP MESSENGER IS A FEASIBLE TOOL TO COMPLEMENT THE TRAINING OF MEDICAL EDUCATORS IN INDIA.

Abstract

Background: Instant Messenger apps in Social media have become a new normal in the difcult COVID 19 Pandemic times. WhatsApp Messenger (WA), as a representative tool of instant messenger Apps, is universally used in India. The ease of sharing text messages, data, and images in groups has decreased the communication between people. This study aims to assess the perception of medical educators across India in incorporating WAas a complementary medical education tool and to study group dynamics between different sizes of WhatsApp groups. Methods: 126 faculties from different medical colleges of India were part of training in medical education supported by WhatsApp. There was the main group of all faculty and six variable sizes smaller groups. An online lecture followed by the WA interactive session was conducted daily at a xed time slot for four weeks. An analysis was performed based on the results of the structured questionnaire after the session on the usefulness of WhatsApp in medical education and the group dynamics after that. Results: 93.6 % of the participants felt that WA is an essential tool in medical education. 42.3 % of participants felt interaction as the main advantage, followed by information sources (26.9%) and discussion activities (15.3%). The participants in smaller WA groups felt that interaction in smaller groups was better than in larger groups (P<0.05). Conclusion: The ndings of this study illustrate that WA is a complementary teaching tool that facilitates an optimum environment for learning. While the WAcan provide information and serve as a platform interaction, the group size affects the dynamics.