E-Learning: A Panacea during COVID- 19 Crisis

Institute closure strategies were imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide to mitigate the rapid infection and transmission rate. E-learning was adapted as an alternative to traditional physical learning to keep the students safe from this infectious virus. While most of the countries have adopted this system, many under-developed and developing countries including Pakistan are not practicing the online system of E-learning as the biggest challenge to e-learning providers and policymakers is the provision of equal access to electronic-based learning to students from underprivileged backgrounds who have limited access to internet facility outside the learning institutions. School closure strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic must be based on equivocal evidence while implementing social distancing measures. If restrictive social distancing policies are to be imposed for a considerable period, other, less disruptive social distancing modes should be considered. The online learning system was a crucial step to balance academic loss in medical education. But our medical institutes are ill-equipped in implementing e-learning effectively. Authorities should devise ways to make e-learning more user-friendly.