The online learning in medical education: A novel challenge in the era of COVID-19 pandemic

Online learning has a well-established role in medical education, and it is well accepted by students. Electronic learning (e-learning) strategy is aimed at improving the quality of medical education by providing students with equal access to quality learning resources. The main advantages of online learning are its flexibility and the capacity for learning to be self-paced. Online learning may be particularly useful for under- and post-graduate medical education. Virtual lectures can substitute conventional lectures in medical education in multiple fields. Online learning has several barriers including lack of time and poor technical skills of their providers, inadequate infrastructure, and the absence of development strategies of the universities. The current COVID-19 pandemic may represent a real challenge to medical education. Online learning techniques can be used to complete the curricula for medical schools during this crisis. This review presents a robust evidence base for e-learning in medical education. Further, it compares online and offline learning methods in medical education.