Comparing Balint Groups as Face-to-face and as Online Events

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, many medical training and further education events have been converted to online seminars. This raises the question of whether the same quality outcome can be achieved with this type of event, as with face-to-face events. This is particularly true for Balint groups, where a high degree of interaction takes place and non-verbal communication between the group participants also plays a big part. Balint groups as face-to-face events have an increased risk of infection for the participants and are no longer approved by many employers to avoid staff shortages due to doctors falling ill. In the anonymous survey of participants from different groups, the evaluation by the on-line participants actually showed advantages, compared to a face-to-face event. The online format even leads to doctors who would normally not be able to attend a Balint group now taking advantage of this training. Balint groups can therefore be a support in doctors' work, especially in situations of great workload - as in the current pandemic. Disadvantages of this format are clearly outweighed by the advantages. The results suggest that, online Balint groups and face-to-face events should continue to be offered simultaneously and the outcomes should be further investigated.