Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Abstract The current outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) across the world forced universities
to suspend learning to limit the spread of the virus. Many medical schools have shifted to online
education as an information delivery mechanism where the educator and learner are separated in
space and potentially also in time. This systematic review aims to explore and understand the variety
of distance learning strategies in medical students in the contexts of COVID‑19. A systematic review
was conducted in Web of Sciences, PubMed, Educational Resources and Information Center, and
Scopus from December 2019 to July 2020. Eight sets of terminology were used, combining “Distance
learning” AND “Medical education” AND “Pandemic.” Studies were reviewed independently by two
reviewers. Data were extracted and quality appraised using QualSyst tools, and synthesized by
performing thematic analysis. A total of 473 articles were identified after removing duplicates and
314 records were screened, of which 125 were included in this study. The primary articles were 52
primarily qualitative articles. Five learning strategies consisted of technology‑enhanced learning (TEL),
simulation‑based learning, technology‑based clinical education, mobile learning, and blended learning.
Tools, methods, and learning resources associated with these five learning strategies were extracted
from the articles. Our review highlights that TEL and simulation‑based learning were more commonly
used than others in distance learning in medical education during the COVID‑19 pandemic. These
strategies have the potential to improve learners’ level of knowledge and performance through
making online learning resources such as Massive Open Online Courses, virtual clinical cases, and
blended sources accessible.