Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on radiology education, training, and practice: A narrative review

Table 1 Impact of COVID-19 on radiology education, training, and service

Ref.	Country	Institute	Study population, n (%)	Time of the study	Survey tools	Findings
Alamer and Alharbi[62], 2021	Saudi Arabia	Department of Radiology, College of Medicine, Qassim University	Medical student (n = 145)	2019-2020 Academic session	On-line questionnaire	The sudden transition to completely distance learning was well received
						Synchronous learning was the preferred mode of delivery
						Student attendance in the synchronous sessions was high
						Synchronous interaction was found to be as effective as on-campus face-to-face learning
						The use of recorded sessions proved to be a source for knowledge gain and a solution for technical difficulties
Durfee et al[63], 2020	United States	Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School	Medical student (n = 111)	April 2020	Online final exam. On-line questionnaire	Virtual radiology clerkship was a successful educational experience
						Final exam scores were similar to the in-person clerkship
						Students expressed their satisfaction with small group homerooms learning activities
						Lack of personal connections between faculty and students
McRoy et al[64], 2020	United States	Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine	Radiology residents (n = 16)	March 15-May 15, 2020	Novel cloud-based Distance Learning Workstation	The model improved residents’ confidence and knowledge to take the independent call.
Veerasuri et al[65], 2020	United Kingdom	A regional United Kingdom radiology school	All specialty trainees	May 5-May 19, 2020	On-line questionnaire	Overall radiology workload had decreased in response to COVID-19
						Decreased subspecialty experience
						Complete lack of subspecialty training
						Decrease well-being compared to before the pandemic
Odedra et al[66], 2020	Canada	Canadian Association of Radiologists	Resident members of the Canadian Association of Radiologists (n = 96)	May 1-May 15, 2020	On-line questionnaire	COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on radiology residency programs
						Experienced an overall higher disruption in daytime schedules and case volumes
						Teaching rounds were moderately affected
						Virtual interviews for fellowship have been proposed
						Internal and external assessments were heavily affected
						Impact on the psychological well-being of the trainees
Rainford et al[67], 2021	12 countries	Selected Radiography training institutions (n = 14)	Student radiographer, including final year students (n = 592)	Mid-June-Mid-July 2020	On-line questionnaire	Highlighted challenges related to clinical placements e.g., accommodation, travel, childcare. finance
Shanahan and Akudjedu[68], 2021	Australia	Members of the Australian Society of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy	Radiographers and radiation therapists (n = 218)	June 24-July 15, 2020	On-line questionnaire	Changes in work hours and workload were experienced due to COVID-19
						PPE was in short supply
						Increased personal stress and anxiety at work
						In addition, their work caused increased stress to their family, partners, or friends
Hoegger et al[69], 2021	North America	86 institutions	Radiology chief residents (n = 140)	March 20-May 15, 2020	On-line questionnaire	59% of residents reported increased stress
						93% of programs had fewer residents on service
Robbins et al[70], 2020	United States	Members of Association of Program Directors in Radiology	Program directors, Associate program directors, department chairs, Education vice-chair, and Faculty (n = 108)	April 16–May 14, 2020	On-line questionnaire	Educational mission–moderate/marked negative impact (70.1%)
						Resident morale–moderate/marked negative impact (44.8%)
						Adequate resident access to mental health resources during the acute phase of the pandemic (88.8%)
						The morale of program directors–mild or marked decreased (61%)
Foley et al[71], 2020	Ireland	All six Irish healthcare regions	Radiographers (n = 370 first survey, and 266 second survey)	March 2020 (first survey). Late May 2020 (second survey)	On-line questionnaire	Almost 50% of the radiographers were exposed to COVID-19-positive patients without appropriate PPE
						Anxiety levels reduced substantially 6 weeks into the crisis period
						40% of the radiographers reported burnout symptoms
						30% reported considering changing jobs or retiring since the pandemic
Alhasan et al[72], 2021	Saudi Arabia	National survey	Radiology residents (n = 109)	Academic year 2019-2020	On-line questionnaire	Most residents reported a negative impact of the pandemic on their educational and clinical activities, and personal well-being
Coppola et al[73], 2021	Italy	National survey	Members of the Italian Society of Medical and Interventional Radiology (n = 2150)	2020	On-line questionnaire	Working and personal life of the respondents was impacted by the pandemic
Patel et al[74], 2021	Canada	National survey	Interventional radiologists (n = 142)	May 5-28, 2020	On-line questionnaire	Pandemic had a profound impact on IR services, particularly for elective cases
						Considerable percentage of trainees would have a delay in starting their careers

PPE: Personal protective equipment.