Measuring the effect of a competency-based education conference for PAs and NPs.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a competency-based continuing medical education (CME) conference model for physician assistants (PAs) and NPs. METHODS: This mixed-method research included a pretest/post-test assessment of knowledge and procedural assessment for six clinical skills, along with an open-ended survey to assess the value of an educational conference for PAs and NPs (N = 48) in an urban academic healthcare facility. RESULTS: Significant increases in knowledge scores and all six clinical skill procedures were noted from pre- to post-test. Participants said they acquired new techniques and knowledge (55%) or improved current knowledge and skills (40%). CONCLUSIONS: The competency-based conference model could serve as a viable method for providing evidence-based learning and informed practice as well as instilling reflective practice and a commitment to personal growth.

Gibson's theory of affordances and situational awareness occurring in urban departments of pediatrics, medicine, and emergency medicine.

Background: The Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety (TeamSTEPPS®) program provides a situation-monitoring tool that allows health-care professionals to perform an environmental scan. This process includes scanning the status of the patient, team members, and the environment, to ensure that patient care is progressing toward the goal. It is assumed that health-care professionals will act in a certain way by providing feedback and support based on the scan. However, there is limited research supporting the impact of the clinical environment on behavior among health-care professionals. Methods: This qualitative research used in situ simulation and a theoretical sampling of six day and overnight shift clinical teams (n = 34) from three departments in an urban hospital in New York City: pediatric medicine, emergency medicine, and internal medicine. Notebook entries by the participants at three intervals during the case and a debriefing following the cases captured participant views, observations, and concerns about the immediate clinical environment. Results: In all six cases, and with every shift, there were documented examples of someone in the environment who saw something but did not speak up, possibly making a difference in regard to patient safety and the outcomes in the case. Some of the noted reasons include not wanting to be wrong, not wanting to hurt someone's feelings, or not being sure. Discussion: Our research explored the environmental scan that health-care team members conducted in three unique department settings, including how they perceived affordances, and the reasons why individuals may not speak up when another team member is not performing properly. Each person possesses a unique awareness and deficit of available affordances because of his/her position in the environment. Patient safety is somewhat reliant on the views and observations of each team member. Educators should use these outcomes to justify teamwork and communication training that includes targeted emphasis on providing candid feedback, situation monitoring, and mutual support.

A scoping review of the unassisted physical exam conducted over synchronous audio-video telemedicine.

BACKGROUND: This scoping review aims to provide a broad overview of the research on the unassisted virtual physical exam performed over synchronous audio-video telemedicine to identify gaps in knowledge and guide future research. METHODS: Searches for studies on the unassisted virtual physical exam were conducted in 3 databases. We included primary research studies in English on the virtual physical exam conducted via patient-to-provider synchronous, audio-video telemedicine in the absence of assistive technology or personnel. Screening and data extraction were performed by 2 independent reviewers. RESULTS: Seventy-four studies met inclusion criteria. The most common components of the physical exam performed over telemedicine were neurologic (38/74, 51%), musculoskeletal (10/74, 14%), multi-system (6/74, 8%), neuropsychologic (5/74, 7%), and skin (5/74, 7%). The majority of the literature focuses on the telemedicine physical exam in the adult population, with only 5% of studies conducted specifically in a pediatric population. During the telemedicine exam, the patients were most commonly located in outpatient offices (28/74, 38%) and homes and other non-clinical settings (25/74, 34%). Both patients and providers in the included studies most frequently used computers for the telemedicine encounter. CONCLUSIONS: Research evaluating the unassisted virtual physical exam is at an early stage of maturity and is skewed toward the neurologic, musculoskeletal, neuropsychologic, and skin exam components. Future research should focus on expanding the range of telemedicine exam maneuvers studied and evaluating the exam in the most relevant settings, which for telemedicine is trending toward exams conducted through mobile devices and in patients' homes.

Telehealth in emergency medicine: A consensus conference to map the intersection of telehealth and emergency medicine.

INTRODUCTION: Telehealth has the potential to significantly change the specialty of emergency medicine (EM) and has rapidly expanded in EM during the COVID pandemic; however, it is unclear how EM should intersect with telehealth. The field lacks a unified research agenda with priorities for scientific questions on telehealth in EM. METHODS: Through the 2020 Society for Academic Emergency Medicine's annual consensus conference, experts in EM and telehealth created a research agenda for the topic. The multiyear process used a modified Delphi technique to develop research questions related to telehealth in EM. Research questions were excluded from the final research agenda if they did not meet a threshold of at least 80% of votes indicating "important" or "very important." RESULTS: Round 1 of voting included 94 research questions, expanded to 103 questions in round 2 and refined to 36 questions for the final vote. Consensus occurred with a final set of 24 important research questions spanning five breakout group topics. Each breakout group domain was represented in the final set of questions. Examples of the questions include: "Among underserved populations, what are mechanisms by which disparities in emergency care delivery may be exacerbated or ameliorated by telehealth" (health care access) and "In what situations should the quality and safety of telehealth be compared to in-person care and in what situations should it be compared to no care" (quality and safety). CONCLUSION: The primary finding from the process was the breadth of gaps in the evidence for telehealth in EM and telehealth in general. Our consensus process identified priority research questions for the use of and evaluation of telehealth in EM to fill the current knowledge gaps. Support should be provided to answer the research questions to guide the evidenced-based development of telehealth in EM.

Advanced Communication and Examination Skills in Telemedicine: A Structured Simulation-Based Course for Medical Students.

Introduction: Telemedicine has become part of mainstream medical practice. High quality virtual care is a skill that will be required of many physicians. Skills required for effective evaluation and communication during a video encounter differ from skills required at bedside, yet few rubrics for educational content and student performance evaluation in telemedicine training have been developed. Our objective was to develop, implement, and assess a training module designed to teach medical providers techniques to deliver professional, effective, and compassionate care during a telemedicine encounter. Methods: We created a simulation-based, 8-hour modular curriculum using the PEARLS debriefing framework with video-based encounters focused on "web-side manner" as a critical corollary to traditional bedside manner. We recorded simulated cases for each student with standardized patients, guided debriefs, and incorporated small-group exercises to teach advanced communication and examination skills. Results: Of medical students, 98 in their major clinical year participated in 2019. Of participants, 97% were enthusiastic about the course; 100% felt simulation was an effective mechanism for delivery of the educational material. After participation, 71% believed that telemedicine had the potential to become part of their future practice; 92% perceived an improvement in their comfort and ability to conduct video-based patient encounters. Discussion: Teaching telemedicine using this methodology was well received by students, providing early exposure to this evolving aspect of medical practice. Qualitative comments were used for targeted improvements of the content and delivery for curriculum development. Objective assessment tools of students completing telemedicine encounters need to be created.

Oral Dexamethasone to Control Wheezing in Children at an Outpatient Clinic.

Asthma, a chronic childhood disease, has resulted in increased emergency department (ED) visits with high costs. Many asthma ED visits are nonemergent and could be treated in outpatient clinics. Literature has concluded that a 2-day course of oral dexamethasone has comparable outcomes to a 5-day course of prednisone in the ED and hospital setting. A retrospective chart review was performed on children requiring in-house treatment with a corticosteroid (dexamethasone n = 23, prednisone n = 40) for acute asthma exacerbations at an ambulatory medical home. The rates of hospital admissions, ED visits, and symptom follow-up were similar between the 2 groups ( P > .05). The cost for a course of dexamethasone was US$1.28 versus US$16.20 for prednisolone. The average cost for an asthma exacerbation office visit was US$79.89 compared with US$3113.28 for an ED visit. A 2-day course of oral dexamethasone appears to be a promising clinical and cost-effective treatment for acute asthma exacerbations at the primary care level.

Simulation-based Remediation in Emergency Medicine Residency Training: A Consensus Study.

INTRODUCTION: Resident remediation is a pressing topic in emergency medicine (EM) training programs. Simulation has become a prominent educational tool in EM training and been recommended for identification of learning gaps and resident remediation. Despite the ubiquitous need for formalized remediation, there is a dearth of literature regarding best practices for simulation-based remediation (SBR). METHODS: We conducted a literature search on SBR practices using the terms "simulation," "remediation," and "simulation based remediation." We identified relevant themes and used them to develop an open-ended questionnaire that was distributed to EM programs with experience in SBR. Thematic analysis was performed on all subsequent responses and used to develop survey instruments, which were then used in a modified two-round Delphi panel to derive a set of consensus statements on the use of SBR from an aggregate of 41 experts in simulation and remediation in EM. RESULTS: Faculty representing 30 programs across North America composed the consensus group with 66% of participants identifying themselves as simulation faculty, 32% as program directors, and 2% as core faculty. The results from our study highlight a strong agreement across many areas of SBR in EM training. SBR is appropriate for a range of deficits, including procedural, medical knowledge application, clinical reasoning/decision-making, communication, teamwork, and crisis resource management. Simulation can be used both diagnostically and therapeutically in remediation, although SBR should be part of a larger remediation plan constructed by the residency leadership team or a faculty expert in remediation, and not the only component. Although summative assessment can have a role in SBR, it needs to be very clearly delineated and transparent to everyone involved. CONCLUSION: Simulation may be used for remediation purposes for certain specific kinds of competencies as long as it is carried out in a transparent manner to all those involved.

Tumor response after yttrium-90 radioembolization for hepatocellular carcinoma: comparison of diffusion-weighted functional MR imaging with anatomic MR imaging.

PURPOSE: Anatomic magnetic resonance (MR) imaging assessment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) response to yttrium-90 ((90)Y) radioembolization may require 3 months before therapeutic effectiveness can be determined. The relationship between anatomic MR and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) changes after (90)Y therapy is unclear. The present study tested the hypothesis that apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values on DWI at 1 month precede anatomic tumor size change at 3 months after (90)Y radioembolization. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this prospective study, 20 patients with HCC (16 men) enrolled between April 2005 and July 2006 underwent lobar (90)Y therapy with mean doses of 141 Gy (right lobe) and 98 Gy (left lobe). Anatomic 1.5-T MR imaging (gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted gradient-recalled echo) and DWI (single-shot spin-echo echo-planar imaging; b value of 0, 500 sec/mm(2)) were performed at baseline (0-3 weeks before (90)Y therapy) and at 1 and 3 months after (90)Y therapy. Tumor size and ADC values were measured and compared, and the percentage change in ADC was compared to the change in tumor size (minimum >5% change in size), with use of a paired t test (alpha = .05). RESULTS: Yttrium-90 therapy was successfully delivered in all patients. The mean baseline ADC of 1.64 x 10(-3) mm(2)/sec +/- 0.30 significantly increased to 1.81 x 10(-3) mm(2)/sec +/- 0.37 at 1 month (P = .02), and to 1.82 x 10(-3) mm(2)/sec +/- 0.23 at 3 months (P = .02). The mean baseline tumor size of 83.0 cm(2) +/- 63.7 did not change statistically at 1 month (84.1 cm(2) +/- 62.1; P = .75) or 3 months (74.0 cm(2) +/- 57.0; P = .10). The overall mean ADC percentage change at 1 month of 10.5% +/- 23.1% preceded an overall mean tumor size percentage change at 3 months of -18.5% +/- 31.5% (P = .03). CONCLUSIONS: HCC tumor response assessed with DWI at 1 month preceded anatomic size changes at 3 months after (90)Y therapy. DWI may assist in early determination of the response or failure of (90)Y therapy for HCC.

Corrigendum to "Fibrous Dysplasia versus Juvenile Ossifying Fibroma: A Dilemma".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2016/6439026.].

Pharmaceutical Dosing Errors at a Pediatric HIV Clinic in Mwanza, Tanzania.

The outpatient medication dosing error rate at a pediatric HIV clinic in Mwanza, Tanzania, was about 1 in every 34 prescriptions. Young children were at highest risk of a dosing error likely because of dose changes with growth and also the inconsistent supply of pediatric formulations. Majority of errors occurred at consecutive visits suggesting clinicians reordered medication without double checking dosing.