Project ECHO Brain Health: Assessing the Impact of a Pilot Program to Promote Self-Efficacy Among Community Health Workers.

This mixed-methods study sought to examine the impact of the Project ECHO Brain Health program on participating community health workers' (CHWs') self-efficacy to address dementia, promote brain health, and advocate for research among Latinx South Texas communities. Using an explanatory sequential design, quantitative data collected from pre- and post-program surveys were analyzed to inform the collection of qualitative data, followed by an interpretation of all findings to better understand the impact of the program on self-efficacy. Pre- and post-surveys were collected from 25 CHWs, 13 of whom later participated in individual interviews. There was a statistically significant increase in mean self-efficacy scores between the pre- and post-surveys among participants. Three categories reflecting the experiences of participants were identified from the qualitative data: addressing training needs; impact on CHWs and their practice; and community of learning. The findings suggest that Project ECHO Brain Health program is a timely intervention that may facilitate increased self-efficacy among CHWs as they navigate the impacts of dementia in their communities.

The mental health consequences of COVID-19 on a sample of health professions students: a mixed methods study.

Objective: To assess and examine how the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted the mental health of a sample of health professions students (HPS) using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design. Participants: Participants included 41 HPS enrolled in a co-curricular interprofessional education (IPE) program. Measurements: Measures included the CES-D scale, PSS scale, and the GAD scale. Qualitative description was used to explore the experiences of these HPS. Results: The HPS explained that fear of acquiring COVID-19, transmitting the virus to loved ones, and dying as a result of the disease negatively influenced their mental health. The HPS revealed that there were some beneficial outcomes resulting from the pandemic, including the strengthening of family bonds and the cultivation of resiliency. Conclusions: The pandemic has had a negative impact on the mental health of these HPS. It is essential that these students receive support for their mental health in order to provide optimal care to the population they serve.

Teaching Person-Centered Care and Interprofessional Collaboration through a Virtual Mental Health World Café: A Mixed Methods IPE Pilot Project.

The purpose of this convergent mixed methods interprofessional education (IPE) pilot project was to help health profession students gain valuable insight about the experiences of people living with mental illness, to help them have a better understanding of person-centered care and have greater knowledge about the importance of interprofessional collaboration. A developmental workgroup which consisted of mental health consumers, four interdisciplinary students, and our team developed and implemented a virtual Mental Health World Café IPE event. Twelve other students attended the World Café event. A paired sample t-test was used to examine group differences between pre- and post-test scores for the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale and the Texas AHEC Survey measures among the four student leaders and the 12 student participants of the virtual Mental Health World Cafe. We conducted individual interviews with the four student leaders and collected reflective journals from the 12 students who attended the World Café event. We examined to what extent the statistically significant quantitative results supported the qualitative results separately for the student leaders and for the student participants of the virtual World Café. We also examined how both the quantitative and qualitative findings aligned with the key components of the Patient-Centered Care in Interprofessional Collaborative Practice Model. While the project allowed the students to reflect upon how they may apply the principles of person-centered care and interprofessional collaboration, the impact of the consumers on the student's experiences was profound and resulted in widespread engagement of the students who attended the event.

Supporting community health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: A mixed methods pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine how the COVID-19 Project ECHO program may have influenced the mental health of community health workers (CHWs) from South Texas. The program was designed around case-based learning and mentorship to provide support to CHWs and help them gain expertise to provide services to their communities. DESIGN: An explanatory sequential mixed methods pilot study. SAMPLE: Fifteen CHWs who were enrolled in the program participated in this study. MEASUREMENTS: The Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression (CES-D) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were used to measure the differences pre- and post-intervention. Qualitative description was used to explore the experiences of the participating CHWs. RESULTS: The PSS post-test mean (12.53) showed a statistically significant decrease from the pretest mean (17.01) (t (14 = 2.456, p = .028). The CHWs explained that the death of loved ones, feelings of isolation, and work-related concerns influenced their mental health. CHWs expressed that the program provided them with emotional support and resources for their clients. CONCLUSIONS: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on disadvantaged and medically underserved areas will be long-lasting; therefore, the need is greater than ever for CHWs to receive mental health support and be able to connect communities with vital resources.

Defining and classifying co-curricular interprofessional education in the health professions: a scoping review protocol.

OBJECTIVE: This scoping review will identify, characterize, and classify co-curricular interprofessional education activities and practices. INTRODUCTION: According to the World Health Organization, interprofessional education occurs when students from two or more professions learn about, from, and with one another to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes. As such, interprofessional education is imperative to health professions education. Globally, competency frameworks and guidelines have urged educators to reach consensus about interprofessional education terminology and to integrate this form of education into formal curricula. Voluntary interprofessional education that takes place outside formal curricula (ie, co-curricular) is frequently used to overcome well-documented barriers (eg, discordant academic calendars). We will explore the global literature to identify, characterize, and classify published examples of co-curricular interprofessional education activities. INCLUSION CRITERIA: This review will consider voluntary interprofessional education involving students from at least two different health professions. These education activities will take place outside the formal curriculum and will not result in transcript designation. METHODS: The search strategy will aim to locate primary studies from peer-reviewed journals indexed in MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, ERIC, and Academic Search Complete. The results will be limited to English-language publications from 2009 until the present. Two independent reviewers will screen titles and abstracts, and potentially relevant papers will be assessed in detail. Data will be extracted using a tool developed by the reviewers. Descriptive statistics will be used to characterize the data, which will be presented in diagrammatic, tabular, or other relevant formats.

Community Health Worker-Led mHealth-Enabled Diabetes Self-management Education and Support Intervention in Rural Latino Adults: Single-Arm Feasibility Trial.

BACKGROUND: Latinos living in rural South Texas have a higher prevalence of diabetes, but their access to diabetes self-management education and support (DSMES) is limited. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to test the feasibility of a community health worker-led, mobile health (mHealth)-based DSMES intervention to reduce disparities in accessing DSMES in underserved rural Latino residents in South Texas. METHODS: This 12-week, single-arm, pre-post trial was delivered by trained community health workers to 15 adults with type 2 diabetes. The intervention consisted of digital diabetes education, self-monitoring, a cloud-based connected platform, and community health worker support. Feasibility was evaluated as retention, actual intervention use, program satisfaction, and barriers to implementation. We also explored the intervention's effect on weight loss and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). RESULTS: All 15 participants were Latino (mean age 61.87 years, SD 10.67; 9/15 female, 60%). The retention rate at posttest was 14 of 15 (93%). On average, the participants completed 37 of 42 (88%) digital diabetes education lessons with 8 participants completing all lessons. Participants spent 81/91 days (89%) step tracking, 71/91 days (78%) food logging, 43/91 days (47%) blood glucose self-monitoring, and 74/91 days (81%) weight self-monitoring. The level of program satisfaction was high. On average, participants lost 3.5 (SD 3.2) kg of body weight (P=.001), while HbA1c level remained unchanged from baseline (6.91%, SD 1.28%) to posttest (7.04%, SD 1.66%; P=.668). CONCLUSIONS: A community health worker-led mHealth-based intervention was feasible and acceptable to improve access to DSMES services for Latino adults living in rural communities. Future randomized controlled trials are needed to test intervention efficacy on weight loss and glycemic control.

Perceptions of Community Health Workers during Two Concurrent National Health Crises: Opioid Use Disorder and COVID-19.

The purpose of this study is to describe the perceptions of community health workers (CHWs), post opioid use disorder training, including the impact of the intervening COVID-19 pandemic, on service delivery and communication. Semi-structured interviews with 10 CHWs were conducted. Categories from the interviews focused on the loss of connections with their clients and how the COVID-19 pandemic caused the CHWs to experience significant interruptions in both their professional and personal lives. The COVID-19 pandemic caused dramatic changes in how CHWs operate within the communities they serve and limiting the interpersonal relationships that are vital to their profession.

Developing and implementing a co-curricular IPE program: AHEC Scholars Program.

As part of a new directive, the Human Resources Services Administration (HRSA) mandated Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Programs across the nation to implement an interprofessional education (IPE) program for health professional students, with the goal of fostering collaborative practice among health profession students and motivating students to work in medically underserved areas post-graduation. The South Texas AHEC Program collaboratively developed and implemented a co-curricular IPE initiative, the AHEC Scholars Program, including didactic and practicum components, focused on the needs of communities in our area. A pre-post quasi-experimental design was used to evaluate the student outcomes related to IPEC Competencies and knowledge and preparation for the practice of core topic areas mandated by HRSA. Student outcomes showed statistically significant improvement in all measures. In order to obtain more detailed accounts of students' practicum experiences, students were asked to complete reflective journals after each practicum. The AHEC Scholars Program provides students with opportunities to work with underserved populations and enables students to explore the benefits of team-based care. This article summarizes the collaborative process of the development and implementation of the AHEC Scholars Program; secondly, it details student outcomes from a 3-month pilot study.