students and tutors' perspectives on the effectiveness of online problem-based learning in medical and health professions

Background: the unprecedented covid-19 pandemic has caused a sudden shift toward online learning, enabling students to continue learning from their homes.objectives: this study aimed to investigate students' and tutors' perspectives on the effectiveness of online problem-based learning (pbl) in medical and health professions.methods: a descriptive online survey was conducted on the pbl tutors and undergraduate students from the schools of dentistry, medicine, and veterinary medicine. two online questionnaires (one for students consisting of 23 items and one for pbl tutors comprising 24 items) were developed to capture respondents' perspectives on the effectiveness of online pbl in medical and health professional education during covid-19 pandemic. data were analyzed using percentage and chi-square tests in spss v.26 software.results: a total of 485 students and 39 tutors completed the questionnaires. the majority of the students (77.1%, p<0.01) and tutors (89.8%, p<0.01) were comfortable using online pbl. they felt that it was easy to use blackboard collaborate through university's learning management system (myelearning). however, 71.5% (p<0.01) of the students reported being distracted in online pbl classes due to connectivity issues.conclusion: the study indicated that both students and tutors generally found online pbl effective, successfully utilizing all features of blackboard collaborate during classes. however, students encountered connectivity issues and had difficulty sharing videos, images, and powerpoint presentations. continuous and thorough monitoring is essential to identify and resolve issues with the university's learning management system to enhance the delivery experience of online pbl.