Potential of Volunteering in Formal and Informal Medical Education-A Theory-Driven Cross-Sectional Study with Example of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Publisher: MDPI Country of Publication: Switzerland NLM ID: 101238455 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1660-4601 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 16604601 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Int J Environ Res Public Health Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: Basel : MDPI, c2004-

COVID-19*/epidemiology ; Education, Medical* ; Students, Medical*; Humans ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Pandemics ; Curriculum

Students' volunteering is an effective way to manage health crises, including pandemics. Due to the limited capacity of the healthcare system at the time of the COVID-19 outbreak, the engagement of students in volunteering services seemed invaluable. Based on different teaching-learning theories, in this survey study, we aimed to evaluate the potential of the volunteering service project launched by the Poznan University of Medical Sciences during the COVID-19 pandemic as a learning opportunity for undergraduate healthcare students. The results indicate the potential of involving students in volunteering activities for educational purposes, as well as other values, including attitudes and professional identity development, which could be difficult to realize using traditional teaching methods. However, stimulating students' reflectiveness seems necessary to reach its full educational effectiveness. Medical teachers should provide students with more opportunities for volunteering and service learning and consider making these a constant element of the curriculum beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

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Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; community-based education; healthcare students; interprofessional education; medical students; professional identity formation; service learning; volunteering

Date Created: 20221223 Date Completed: 20221226 Latest Revision: 20230120

20231215

PMC9779563

10.3390/ijerph192416955

36554834