Simulation-based holistic education in physiotherapy interns to increase empathy toward older adults and individuals with disabilities.

BACKGROUND: The proportion of older adults and individuals with disabilities in the general population increases each year. Thus, clinical clerkships designed for physiotherapy interns should provide more than simply knowledge and skills. For such interns to be able to handle the requirements of their future jobs, clerkships must enable them to develop empathy and positive attitudes toward patients. This study investigated the effect of simulation-based, holistic health-care education on physiotherapy interns' empathy, attitudes, and knowledge.  METHODS: A parallel-group design. Thirty physiotherapy interns from a medical institution were enrolled as participants, with experimental and control groups each comprising 15 participants. Both groups received standard clinical training. However, the experimental group received an additional 3.5 h of simulation-based holistic health-care education. The Jefferson Scale of Empathy, Kogan's Attitudes Toward Old People Scale, the Attitudes Towards the Elderly Scale, the Knowledge About Aging Scale, Knowledge of the Situation of Older People Scale, Perceptions of Working with Older People Scale, and Care Willingness Scale were used in a pretest and posttest. RESULTS: After the intervention period, we observed substantial between-group differences of 6.4 points on the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (p = 0.001), 7.7 points on Kogan's Attitudes Toward Old People Scale (p = 0.002), 3.5 points on the Attitudes Toward the Elderly Scale (p = 0.002), 2.5 points on Knowledge About Aging (p = 0.055), 4.5 points on the Knowledge of the Situation of Older People Scale (p < 0.001), and 2.1 points on Perceptions of Working with Older People Scale (p = 0.046). CONCLUSION: Simulation-based, holistic health-care education can significantly improve the empathy, knowledge, and attitudes of physiotherapy interns.

Adaptation of Medical Students During Clinical Training: Effects of Holistic Preclinical Education on Clerkship Performance.

THEORY: Taiwan's medical undergraduate program at a university or medical center is a continuation of 12 years of compulsory citizenship education rooted in holistic philosophies. Students acquire both technical knowledge and nontechnical attributes, which are necessary for success in further work and life. The early clinical learning experiences of medical students are primarily acquired through clerkships. These clerkships require medical students to apply and extend what they learned during their preclinical education; however, previous studies have explored this issue through examining fragmentary factors such as preclinical course grades and traits but not undertaking comprehensive, whole-person investigations. HYPOTHESES: To account for the potential benefits of a holistic approach in medical students' learning, we propose three hypotheses: Medical students' preclinical performance on Taiwan's technical and nontechnical higher education assessments are positively associated with their clinical competence (Hypothesis 1) and psychological well-being (Hypothesis 2) during clerkships, and medical students' psychological well-being during clerkships is positively associated with their clinical competence (Hypothesis 3). METHOD: We studied a cohort of 65 medical students engaged in clerkships from September 2013 to April 2015. Their preclinical technical knowledge scores-formal curricular grades received from course instructors-were obtained from their medical school's archival dataset. Their nontechnical attributes-moral and social performance scores received from student mentors and physical performance scores received from course instructors-were also obtained from the school's archival data set. The medical students' competence in their 2-year clinical clerkships was measured using the objective structured clinical examination scores from the end of both clerkship years. The medical students' psychological well-being during their 2-year clerkships was measured according to burnout level, which was determined using routine online surveys that employed validated, structured, and self-administered questionnaires at each specialty rotation. Multiple regressions and linear mixed-effects model were employed for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Our study revealed that higher preclinical technical knowledge predicted superior clinical competence and a higher level of burnout during clerkships. By contrast, higher preclinical nontechnical attributes (i.e., higher preclinical moral, social, and physical performance) predicted lower level of burnout. However, no relationship was discovered between clerkship burnout and the clinical competence of the medical students. CONCLUSIONS: Our study verified the value of a holistic education that encompasses both technical knowledge and nontechnical attributes during the preclinical learning stage for medical students. Our findings can serve as a reference for medical educators designing preclinical educational programs for medical students.

Does variability across three universities in the implementation of a college course on human flourishing affect student outcomes?

OBJECTIVE: This study explores whether variability in the implementation of an undergraduate course on human flourishing is differentially associated with student outcomes. PARTICIPANTS: 101 students in the "Art and Science of Human Flourishing" course across three large, public, R1 universities in Fall 2018 participated in the study. METHODS: Formative course data included researcher observations of weekly class pedagogy, students' weekly meditation practice logs and end-of-course assessments, and pre/post surveys measuring changes in participating students' outcomes related to flourishing (e.g., attentional skills, social-emotional skills, perspectives on flourishing, mental and physical health). RESULTS: Although course pedagogy and student engagement varied across the three universities, students' outcomes were nonetheless similar. CONCLUSIONS: Variability in course implementation did not appear to differentially affect students' outcomes. We tentatively conclude that other institutions interested in offering the flourishing course may make limited adaptations to fit their pedagogical preferences without concern for altering its impact on students.

¿La bioética en la educación ambiental? / The environmental education in bioethics?

Introducción: En el área del medio ambiente, se ha percibido la bioética como una interdisciplina en la construcción de un pensamiento crítico, que debería concluir en un saber ambiental con ética y en un planteamiento epistemológico donde se reafirmen los valores existenciales y axiológicos, para finalizar analizando los derroteros de la educación ambiental. Objetivos: Demostrar cómo la bioética reivindica los valores del humanismo y plantear la educación ambiental como una oportunidad de acción y generación de acciones en el desarrollo sostenible de las comunidades colombianas. Metodología: Mediante revisión bibliográfica, se elaboró un ensayo acerca de la relación de la bioética con la educación ambiental, en cuanto a los aspectos del ambiente, el desarrollo socioeconómico y la pedagogía ambiental. Resultados: Se realizaron descripciones acerca del concepto holístico en el medio ambiente; conceptualización sobre ética ambiental; conceptualización acerca del desarrollo sostenible, la globalización y la sustentabilidad; y conceptualización acerca de la educación ambiental y la bioética. Conclusiones: Del análisis realizado hay un primer epílogo que conduce a asumir la responsabilidad por nuestro accionar en el mundo y ser capaces de entender que la calidad de vida alcanza su plenitud, cuando se trasciende desde la conciencia individual hacia una forma de conciencia capaz de sentir como propia no sólo la necesidad sino, la de todo otro ser humano y de toda otra forma de vida. Y un segundo epílogo en el plantear estrategias de una educación ambiental, diferentes a las tradicionales, como una evolución hacia la educación para la sostenibilidad, sobre el cómo continuar el desarrollo al mismo tiempo que se protege, preserva y conservan los sistemas de soporte vital del planeta.

Introduction: In the area of the environment, it has been perceived the Bioethics like an interdisciplinary in the construction of a critical thought that should conclude in an environmental knowledge with ethics and in a position epistemologist where the existential values and axiological are reaffirmed, to conclude analyzing the courses of the environmental education. Objectives: To demonstrate how the Bioethics claims the values of the humanism and to outline the Environmental Education as an action opportunity and generation of actions in the sustainable development of the communities of our region. Methodology: By means of bibliographical revision, a rehearsal was elaborated about the relationship of the Bioethics with the Environmental Education, as for the aspects of the atmosphere, the socioeconomic development and the environmental pedagogy. Results: They were carried out descriptions about the Holistic concept in the environment; conceptualization on Environmental Ethics; conceptualization about the Sustainable Development, the Globalization and the Sustainability; and conceptualization about the Environmental Education and the Bioethics. Conclusions: Of the carried out analysis we have a first epilogue that drives to assume the responsibility for our to work in the world and being able to understand that our quality of life reaches its fullness, when we transcend from our individual conscience toward a form of conscience able to not feel as own alone our necessity but, that of all other human being and in all other way of life. And a second epilogue in outlining strategies of an Environmental Education, different to the traditional ones, like an evolution toward the Education for the Sustainability, on the as continuing the development at the same time that it is protected, it preserves and they conserve the systems of vital support of the planet.