Clinical education

Background Clinical pharmacy practice in hospitals is a new role for pharmacists in Sudan. Pharmacists have to face the challenge of moving from their traditional roles within the pharmacy premises to new roles on the wards with direct contact with patients and other healthcare professionals. Objectives To explore the role and challenges facing the clinical pharmacists of Sudan. Settings Two of the main government hospitals in Sudan and an online survey. Method This study applied a two phase mixed method, a focus group discussion and a survey...

Background Complex polypharmacotherapy makes kidney transplant patients vulnerable to drug-drug interactions (DDIs). Objective To study prevalence and nature of potential DDIs (pDDIs) in kidney transplant patients. Setting Internal medicine ICU, University Hospital RWTH Aachen. Method In this retrospective observational study, pDDIs were identified in the first week after transplant from 1999 to 2010. Patients aged at least 18 years with prescription of at least two drugs were included. Patients with incomplete data were excluded...

BACKGROUND: Journal clubs play an important role in the education of orthopaedic surgery residents; however, there are sparse data available on the characteristics that make journal clubs effective. OBJECTIVE: The primary goal of this study was to determine the characteristics of effective journal clubs as identified by orthopaedic residents and faculty. We sought to compare the opinions of residents and faculty in order to identify areas that may benefit from future research and discussion...

The Diabetes Care Program of Nova Scotia (DCPNS)'s mission is "to improve, through leadership and partnerships, the health of Nova Scotians living with, affected by, or at risk of developing diabetes." Working together with local, provincial and national partners, the DCPNS has improved and standardized diabetes care in Nova Scotia over the past 25 years by developing and deploying a resourceful and collaborative program model. This article describes the model and highlights its key achievements. With balanced representation from frontline providers through to senior decision makers in health care, the DCPNS works across the age continuum, supporting the implementation of national clinical practice guidelines and, when necessary, developing provincial guidelines to meet local needs...

Nurse Practitioners (NPs) receive core clinical training at master's level, with their employer providing the opportunity to upskill in clinical and procedural competencies. It is increasingly recognised that this generic education requires supplementary training for operating effectively within a specific clinical environment. In this paper we describe a pilot program designed to train Australian NP Candidates to work effectively within the Emergency Department Fast Track model of care. The training program consisted of a 12-month period: four hours in-house training per week over two semesters, running concurrently with the NP candidate's University semesters, and 3 months' clinical practice to consolidate...

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of periodontal status at the time of nonsurgical root canal treatment (NSRCT) on the survival rate of endodontically treated teeth (ETT). METHODS: In this retrospective investigation, molars that received NSRCT in an advanced specialty education program in endodontics from 2009 through 2017 were initially recruited. After the application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 315 teeth were included in the study...

BACKGROUND: Young adulthood is a developmental period frequently associated with occurrence of impulsive behaviors including gambling. It is estimated that 73% of children and 87% of adults in the United States regularly use caffeine. Questions remain, however, concerning the role of caffeine in the development and maintenance of impulsive behaviors such as gambling. METHODS: Sixty-one young adults with at least some degree of disordered gambling were recruited from two Mid-Western university communities in the United States using media advertisements...

OBJECTIVE: Numerous disasters confirm the need for critical event training in healthcare professions. However, no single discipline works in isolation and interprofessional learning is recognized as a necessary component. An interprofessional faculty group designed a learning curriculum crossing professional schools. DESIGN: Faculty members from four healthcare schools within the university (nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and medicine) developed an interdisciplinary course merging both published cross-cutting competencies for critical event response and interprofessional education competencies...

BACKGROUND: Effective interprofessional collaboration (IPC) has been shown to depend on clear role definitions, yet there are important gaps with regard to role clarity in the IPC literature. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether there was a relationship between internal medicine residents' and nurses' role perceptions and their actual actions in practice, and to identify areas that would benefit from more specific interprofessional education. METHODS: Fourteen residents and 14 nurses working in internal medicine were interviewed about their role perceptions, and then randomly paired to manage two simulated clinical cases...

BACKGROUND: Chest X-ray (CXR) is a common imaging modality that could impact immediate decision-making for acute chest pathologies. We sought to examine the non-radiologists proficiency of diagnosing acute pathologies manifest on CXR. METHODS: We selected 9 clinical vignettes, each associated with a CXR, wherein only a single acute chest pathology was manifest. We also added a low-risk vignette associated with a normal CXR. We built an electronic survey with the CXR-embedded vignettes and also inquired about the participants' confidence in the diagnosis, and prior exposure to the topics...

BACKGROUND: Addressing suboptimal breastfeeding initiation and duration rates is a priority in the United States. To address challenges to improving these rates, the voices of the providers who work with breastfeeding mothers should be heard. Research aim: The purpose of this study was to explore lactation consultants' perceived barriers to managing early breastfeeding problems. METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted with a grounded theory methodological approach...

Understanding the minimal dose of physical activity required to achieve improvement in physical functioning and reductions in disability risk is necessary to inform public health recommendations. To examine the effect of physical activity dose on changes in physical functioning and the onset of major mobility disability in The Lifestyle Interventions and Independence for Elders (LIFE) Study. We conducted a multicenter single masked randomized controlled trial that enrolled participants in 2010 and 2011 and followed them for an average of 2...

Background Timely and periodic pubertal assessment in children is vital to identify puberty related disorders. Pediatricians need to have working knowledge of puberty time and tempo. Pediatric residency is an important platform to acquire physical examination skills including pubertal assessment. Objective An educational intervention for teaching pubertal assessment was piloted on pediatric residents at our institution. Methods The intervention comprised of interactive lecture series, ID badge size Tanner stage cards and Tanner posters placed in residents' continuity clinics...

Toxocariasis, one of a group of parasitic diseases known as neglected parasitic infections, is a disease caused by the larvae of two species of Toxocara roundworms, Toxocara canis, from dogs, and less commonly Toxocara cati, from cats. Although most infected individuals are asymptomatic, clinical manifestations may include fever, fatigue, coughing, wheezing, or abdominal pain (visceral toxocariasis) or vision loss, retina damage, or eye inflammation (ocular toxocariasis). To assess U.S. pediatrician knowledge of toxocariasis, we conducted an electronic survey of American Academy of Pediatrics members...

Pain neuroscience education (PNE) has gained considerable attention in research. Three systematic reviews have shown increasing efficacy of PNE decreasing pain, disability, pain catastrophization, movement restrictions, and healthcare utilization. In the development of any new therapeutic approach, it is proposed that there are three stages: development, validation, and implementation. To date, the development and validation of PNE have been well-established. The third stage, implementation, however, lacks when it comes to PNE...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To describe oncology nurses' experiences discussing clinical trials with their patients, and to assess barriers to these discussions.
. RESEARCH APPROACH: A qualitative study designed to elicit narratives from oncology nurses. 
. SETTING: Community- and academic-based oncology clinics throughout the United States.
. PARTICIPANTS: 33 oncology nurses involved in direct patient care in community-based and large hospital-based settings...

Part of my clinical role involves educating and informing patients about the risks and benefits of the various treatment options related to prostate cancer. Like many bed- or chairside nurses, I spend a lot of time talking and listening to my patients. I am sometimes surprised when I get a call from a patient who seemingly did not hear or understand something that I told him or her. I know I told the patient, and I think I am a good educator, so why the confusion? The answer is, in part, simple-health literacy (or the lack thereof)...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the contributions of patient and caregiver factors to length of stay (LOS) and 30-day readmission status for recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT).
. DESIGN: Secondary data analysis from a phase 2 clinical trial.
. SETTING: National Institutes of Health Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
. SAMPLE: 68 dyads (N = 136) comprised of patients receiving HSCT and their caregivers...

BACKGROUND: Support supervision is one of the strategies used to check the quality of services provided at health facilities. From 2013 to 2015, Makerere University School of Public Health strengthened support supervision in the district of Kibuku, Kamuli and Pallisa in Eastern Uganda to improve the quality of maternal and newborn services. OBJECTIVE: This article assesses quality improvements in maternal and newborn care services and practices during this period...

HIV diagnosis may be a source of psychological distress. Late initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and treatment-related beliefs may intensify psychological distress among those recently diagnosed. This analysis describes the prevalence of psychological distress among people living with HIV (PLWH) and examines the association of recent HIV diagnosis, late ART initiation and treatment-related beliefs with psychological distress. The sample includes 1175 PLWH aged 18 or older initiating ART at six HIV clinics in Ethiopia...