Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Meaningful Engagement Of Patients And Families In A Complex Trial Of Advance Care Planning In Primary Care, Angela K. Combe, Deborah L. Dokken, Mary M. Minniti, Annette M. Totten

Patient Experience Journal

Engagement of Patient and Family Advisors (PFAs) is increasingly recommended as best practice in research. During the design and conduct of a large trial of advance care planning (ACP) in primary care, we expanded on the funder’s (Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute®) requirement for an engagement plan and sought to develop an innovative approach to fostering and sustaining meaningful engagement of PFAs throughout all phases of the trial. Structures were developed that integrated PFAs into planning and provided the foundation for their ongoing participation. A continuous quality improvement approach became the framework for ongoing engagement. This involved setting goals; collecting data …

Global Child And Family-Centered Care Fellowship, Education And Mentorship For Pediatric Healthcare Professionals: A Literature Review, Ashley Zheng, Bobbijo Pansier

Patient Experience Journal

Child- and family-centered care (FCC) is increasingly accepted and implemented to optimize the healthcare experience for patients, their families, and healthcare professionals. Standish Foundation for Children, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, has designed and piloted a fellowship to educate pediatric healthcare professionals in FCC & psychosocial care via an inquiry and mentorship model in Tbilisis, Georgia. This review aimed to evaluate and synthesize existing literature on psychosocial and FCC mentorship for pediatric healthcare professionals in four parts: ongoing need, effects on healthcare professionals, effects on children and their families and/or caregivers, and in cross-country healthcare settings. Reviewers searched open-source databases for articles …

Adapting And Responding To A Pandemic: Patient And Family Advisory Councils In Children's Hospitals During Covid-19, Pam Dardess, Deborah L. Dokken, Ndidi I. Unaka, Jesse Hsu, Mindy Hoang, Andrew F. Beck, Beverley H. Johnson

Patient Experience Journal

This mixed-methods study investigated the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs) within children’s hospitals in the United States. Specifically, the study sought to understand how PFACs adapted operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, how patient and family advisors (PFAs) were engaged in the response to COVID-19, and the intersection of the COVID-19 pandemic with PFAC diversity, equity, and inclusion. The study consisted of a survey distributed to 228 children’s hospitals, with a 73% response rate, and in-depth interviews with selected survey respondents (n=12). While COVID-19 temporarily disrupted PFAC operations and forced rapid …

Pharmacy Students As Volunteer Medical Staff For American Diabetes Association Summer Camp, Emily Harvath

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

For children living with a diagnosis of diabetes, com-munity support and education about proper disease management are critical for the mental and physical health of the child and their family. The experiences offered at summer camps hosted by the American Diabetes Association address both of these needs for the pediatric diabetes community. These camps provide children with the opportunity to participate in a traditional camp experience—swimming, rock climbing, tubing, and more—while giving parents peace of mind in the knowledge that their child’s diabetes will be closely monitored by a team of health care professionals. During my time as volunteer medical …

Resignation, Kaline E. Mulvihill

Akesis

I have struggled with anxiety and depression for most of my life. At first, I didn't understand it. Then, I was embarrassed by it. I chose to hide my struggle. It became my own silent battle. A battle I was slowly losing. In March of 2020, the world shut down. A dark, suffocating cloud began to settle over all of us. Life as we knew it, completely changed. At first, I thought I was handling the drastic life changes. I thought I was simply adapting. Then it happened, I lost control. My body physically prevented me from sleeping. It was …

Zero Balancing In The Chiropractic Practice, Michele Doucette Dc

Journal of Transformative Touch

Discovering the profound gifts of the leading-edge structural and energetic manual therapy Zero Balancing (ZB), and adding it to my chiropractic and nutrition practice, has unified my personal growth with the sustainability of my professional practice. Much of humanity is starving for wholeness, authenticity, and meaningful connection with ourselves, others, and something greater. Chiropractors are well positioned to be leaders in a true evolution of healthcare, especially if, as we continue to explore the various branches of our therapeutic repertoires, we stay connected to our vitalistic roots that are now more supported than ever by new findings in the fields …

Indiana Secondary School Athletic Directors Perceptions Of Athletic Training Services And Influences On Hiring Athletic Trainers, Thomas J. Greffly, Matthew Rivera, Lindsey E. Eberman

Journal of Sports Medicine and Allied Health Sciences: Official Journal of the Ohio Athletic Trainers Association

Indiana Secondary School Athletic Directors Perceptions of Athletic Training Services and Influences on Hiring Athletic Trainers

Purpose: The purpose of this investigation was to examine ADs perceptions on satisfaction of current care provided, factors influencing the hiring of ATs, and the roles and responsibilities of ATs.

Methods: We used a mixed methods design with an online survey (Qualtrics^®, Provo, UT), which we distributed to Indiana secondary school ADs (n = 410) with publicly available emails. The survey remained open for 5 weeks with reminder emails sent weekly. We used a panel (n=2) with experience in survey research …

Factors Associated With Patient Rating Of Physician Communication Effectiveness And Satisfaction In Musculoskeletal Care, Amirreza Fatehi, Amanda Gonzalez Md, David Bandell, Joost Kortlever, Léon Rijk, David Ring

Patient Experience Journal

Effective communication is associated with adherence to healthy habits. This study sought factors associated with communication effectiveness and satisfaction with musculoskeletal specialty care in order to inform efforts to improve communication effectiveness using measurement, feedback, and coaching. After a new or return upper extremity specialist visit, 146 adult patients completed a survey recording demographics, measures of catastrophic thinking in response to nociception, symptoms of depression, and symptoms of anxiety, and they rated communication effectiveness (5 questions answered on a 4-point Likert scale) and satisfaction with the visit (slider with anchors of 0 and 100). Patients also provided text answers to …

A Battle For Hope, Kaline E. Mulvihill

Akesis

I have friends and family members working in all aspects of the medical system. They are PAs, PTs, nurses, doctors, caregivers, and support staff. They are on the frontline in the brutal battle against Covid-19. This is their story. It is a story about fear, duty, strength, and finding hope. While we adapt to this new normal and cope with the ever-changing landscape, we have to remember that we are all in this fight together.

Finding Common Threads: How Patients, Physicians And Nurses Perceive The Patient Gown, Christy M. Lucas, Cheryl Dellasega

Patient Experience Journal

Evidence-based care is standard practice in medicine, but the patient gown has fallen outside the scope of scholarly research. The current gown renders a patient vulnerable, diminishing patients’ sense of identity, agency, and dignity with its one-size-fits-none design. The impact on providers is similarly neglected. Our objective was to explore how patients and providers derive meaning from patient gowns. A convenience sample at an academic medical center was interviewed utilizing a standardized framework developed by a medical student and two PhD-prepared researchers with experience in qualitative methods. The study was inductive in nature, seeking to understand perceptions of the patient …

Is It Fair To Compare? A Patient And Family Experience Of Two Healthcare Systems And Neurosurgical Teams Within A Two-Week Period, Laura Miller Cpxp

Patient Experience Journal

As the mother of a 28-year-old son with cerebral palsy and hydrocephalus, and as a healthcare consultant focused on patient experience and professional development, I have a unique perspective and skill set. Recently he experienced symptoms that included an excruciating headache, neck pain and lethargy. Fearing his ventriculoperitoneal shunt had malfunctioned, he went to the emergency room and was later admitted on the neuro inpatient floor for a three-day hospitalization. His original shunt had been placed in 1991, and he never had an issue with until August 2018. While in the hospital, he was informed that he was no longer …

Improving Collaboration Between Pharmacists And Physicians, Paras Patel

BU Well

Physicians and pharmacists have differing but complementary roles that can optimize patient care when structured effectively. Unfortunately, these two professionals are not collaborating well enough, as patient outcomes, especially in relation to medication adherence, continue to decline. Coordinated care of patients can improve by expanding bidirectional communication and sharing additional patient information with each other. It will be necessary to continue to promote collaborative care in the educational and training stages of these professionals’ careers to build trust and understanding of professional scope. Ultimately, the healthcare infrastructure will have to continue to progress to make collaboration more available and valuable …

Preference-Sensitive Decisions Of Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer: The Need For Decision Support, Julie Van De Haterd, Helene Voogdt-Pruis, Ilse Raats, Rianne Van Den Brink, Haske Van Veenendaal

Patient Experience Journal

Because of disease progression and the increasing number of treatment options, patients with metastatic breast cancer face multiple decisions over time. Our aim was to identify the multiple decisions patients with metastatic breast cancer face in order to decide which decision aids will be developed. First, we analyzed the clinical practice guidelines to identify decisions encountered by patients with metastatic breast cancer and healthcare professionals. Furthermore, an online questionnaire for patients, a focus group interview with patients and interviews with healthcare professionals were performed. In addition, we performed a systematic literature research and internet search to identify relevant decision support …

Improving Process And Enhancing Parent And Therapist Satisfaction Through A Coordinated Intake Approach, Sharla Piecowye, Devona Gibson, Janis Carscadden, Kayla Ueland, Gregory Wells, Scott Oddie

Patient Experience Journal

Recent research indicates that, in Canada, approximately one in five children entering school are not meeting age appropriate milestones in physical, social, language, or cognitive development. Even where support services are available families often face barriers in accessing these. With the goals of improving access to programs, reducing barriers and increasing consistency and efficiency, a new Coordinated Intake Approach (CIA) was developed for families accessing Children’s Rehabilitation Services. It was expected that the CIA would result in 1) parents finding the intake process more satisfactory and easier to complete, 2) therapists feeling more supported and satisfied and 3) a decrease …

Cost-Effective Practice Of Neurology: An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Rashid Jooma

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Pakistanis spent $ 7.2 billion on healthcare in 2013 (3.1% of our Gross Domestic Product), representing a per capita expenditure of $ 39.4. The government contribution to this was no more than 31.4% ($ 12.4 per capita). The public allocations to health thus represent a paltry 4.7% of total government expenditure and are just shy of 1% of our GDP.

Examining Universal Primary Healthcare Through Community-Based Initiatives, Donald E. Warden

Oglethorpe Journal of Undergraduate Research

This paper examines enacting community-based primary healthcare programs and initiatives. It looks at the weaknesses of past attempts, the successes of current attempts, and gives insight into ways everyday citizens can change the way the world does healthcare. There are social, economic, and political barriers as to why these programs are not enacted. Since 1978, Member states of the United Nations strive towards healthcare for all. The original 1978 Declaration of Alma-Ata sets the bar at achieving this goal by the year 2000. Now in the 21^st century, the world still battles inadequate healthcare. Nations continue to strive towards …

Entitlements: Not Just A Health Care Problem, Andrew G. Biggs

The University of New Hampshire Law Review

[Excerpt] “A new consensus on entitlement reform has developed in Washington: rising per-capita health care spending is the only real crisis besetting the government‘s entitlement programs, while America‘s aging population and Social Security play minor roles at best. Some cite this view to shift the policy emphasis from entitlement cost control to the restructuring of the U.S. health sector, including private health care. But this new consensus is flawed. Using standard accounting practices and including all major government entitlement programs, population aging will play an equal role with health care cost growth over the next seventy-five years and a significantly …