Bedside nurses' roles in discharge collaboration in general internal medicine: Disconnected, disempowered and devalued?

Collaboration among nurses and other healthcare professionals is needed for effective hospital discharge planning. However, interprofessional interactions and practices related to discharge vary within and across hospitals. These interactions are influenced by the ways in which healthcare professionals' roles are being shaped by hospital discharge priorities. This study explored the experience of bedside nurses' interprofessional collaboration in relation to discharge in a general medicine unit. An ethnographic approach was employed to obtain an in-depth insight into the perceptions and practices of nurses and other healthcare professionals regarding collaborative practices around discharge. Sixty-five hours of observations was undertaken, and 23 interviews were conducted with nurses and other healthcare professionals. According to our results, bedside nurses had limited engagement in interprofessional collaboration and discharge planning. This was apparent by bedside nurses' absence from morning rounds, one-way flow of information from rounds to the bedside nurses following rounds, and limited opportunities for interaction with other healthcare professionals and decision-making during the day. The disconnection, disempowerment and devaluing of bedside nurses in patient discharge planning has implications for quality of care and nursing work. Study findings are positioned within previous work on nurse-physician interactions and the current context of nursing care.

The role of morbidity and mortality rounds in medical education: a scoping review.

CONTEXT: There is increasing focus on how health care professionals can be trained effectively in quality improvement and patient safety principles. The morbidity and mortality round (MMR) has often been used as a tool with which to examine and teach care quality, yet little is known of its implementation and educational outcomes. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this scoping review are to examine and summarise the literature on how the MMR is designed and delivered, and to identify how it is evaluated for effectiveness in addressing medical education outcomes. METHODS: A literature search of the PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycInfo and Cochrane Library databases was conducted for articles published from 1980 to 1 June 2016. Publications in English describing the design, implementation and evaluation of MMRs were included. A total of 67 studies were identified, including eight survey-based studies, four literature reviews, one ethnographic study, three opinion papers, two qualitative observation studies and 49 case studies of education programmes with or without formal evaluation. Study outcomes were categorised using Donald Moore's framework for the evaluation of continuing medical education (CME). RESULTS: There is much heterogeneity within the literature regarding the implementation, delivery and goals of the MMR. Common design components included explicit programme goals and objectives, the case selection process, case presentation models and some form of case analysis. Evaluation of CME outcomes for MMR were mainly limited to learner participation, satisfaction and self-assessed changes in knowledge. CONCLUSIONS: The MMR is widely utilised as an educational tool to promote medical education, patient safety and quality improvement. Although evidence to guide the design and implementation of the MMR to achieve measurable CME outcomes remains limited, there are components associated with positive improvements to learning and performance outcomes.

Where is the client/patient voice in interprofessional healthcare team assessments? Findings from a one-day forum.

There is a growing interest in interprofessional care (IPC) as a way to provide better healthcare. However, it is difficult to evaluate this mode of healthcare delivery because identifying the appropriate measurement tool is a challenge, given the wide diversity in team composition and settings. Adding to this complexity is a key gap in the IPC evaluation research: the client/patient perspective. This perspective has generally not been included in the development of IPC healthcare team evaluations. The authors received a Canadian Institute for Health Research Planning Grant to host a one-day forum with 24 participants from across Canada representing health professions such as social work, medicine, occupational therapy, and physical therapy, in addition to researchers, client/patient advocates, and hospital administrators. The overarching goal of the forum was to create a demonstration project that supports the development of an IPC assessment tool for healthcare teams that includes clients/patients. Using a concept mapping methodology, participants discussed client/patient inclusion in IPC assessments, and through a consensus process, chose a demonstration project for further development.

Simulation in Undergraduate Psychiatry: Exploring the Depth of Learner Engagement.

OBJECTIVES: Simulation-based methodologies are increasingly used in undergraduate medical education to expand students' exposure to complex clinical scenarios. Engagement of students in these simulation-based methodologies is a key determinant of their success in learning. Thus, the authors conducted a systematic review to (1) identify simulation methods in use within the undergraduate psychiatry curriculum and (2) assess learner engagement using these methods. METHODS: Following a PRISMA methodology, the authors searched MEDLINE, ERIC, and PsychINFO databases from 1977 to 2015. Studies applying simulation in undergraduate psychiatric education were reviewed. The depth of learner engagement was assessed using Kolb's four-stage learning cycle. RESULTS: Of 371 publications identified, 63 met all the inclusion criteria: 48 used standardized patients and 16 used online or virtual learning case modules. Only one study used high fidelity mannequins. Three studies satisfied multiple stages in Kolb's Learning Cycle, including a single study that addressed all four domains. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the varied uses of simulation across other health disciplines, there were few novel or innovative uses of simulation in undergraduate psychiatric education since the last review in 2008. Expanding on the use of simulation to improve communication, build empathy, and decrease stigma in psychiatry is essential given the relevance to all facets of medical practice. Given the complexity of psychiatry, simulation interventions should extend beyond communication scenarios. Medical students need more opportunities to reflect and debrief on simulation experiences and integrate learning into new contexts. Faculty development should focus on these novel approaches to simulation to deeply engage learners and enhance outcomes.

A sociological exploration of the tensions related to interprofessional collaboration in acute-care discharge planning.

Patient discharge is a key concern in hospitals, particularly in acute care, given the multifaceted and challenging nature of patients' healthcare needs. Policies on discharge have identified the importance of interprofessional collaboration, yet research has described its limitations in this clinical context. This study aimed to extend our understanding of interprofessional interactions related to discharge in a general internal medicine setting by using sociological theories to illuminate the existence of, and interplay between, structural factors and microlevel practices. An ethnographic approach was employed to obtain an in-depth insight into healthcare providers' perspectives, behaviours, and interactions regarding discharge. Data collection involved observations, interviews, and document analysis. Approximately 65 hours of observations were undertaken, 23 interviews were conducted with healthcare providers, and government and hospital discharge documents were collected. Data were analysed using a directed content approach. The findings indicate the existence of a medically dominated division of healthcare labour in patient discharge with opportunities for some interprofessional negotiations; the role of organizational routines in facilitating and challenging interprofessional negotiations in patient discharge; and tensions in organizational priorities that impact an interprofessional approach to discharge. The findings provide insight into the various levels at which interventions can be targeted to improve interprofessional collaboration in discharge while recognizing the organizational tensions that challenge an interprofessional approach.

Medical Residents and Interprofessional Interactions in Discharge: An Ethnographic Exploration of Factors That Affect Negotiation.

BACKGROUND: Interprofessional collaboration is an important aspect of patient discharge from a general internal medicine (GIM) unit. However, there has been minimal empirical or theoretical research that has examined interactions that occur between medical residents and other healthcare professionals in the discharge process. This study provides insight into the social processes that shape and characterize such interactions. OBJECTIVE: To explore factors that shape interactions between medical residents and other healthcare professionals in relation to patient discharge, and to examine the opportunities for negotiations about discharge between these professional groups. DESIGN: A qualitative ethnographic approach using observations, interviews and documentary analysis. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Healthcare professionals working in a GIM unit in Canada. APPROACH: Sixty-five hours of observations were undertaken in a range of settings (e.g. interprofessional rounds, medical and nursing rounds, nursing station) in the unit over a 17-month period. A maximum variation sampling approach was used to identify healthcare professionals working in the unit. Twenty-three interviews were completed, recorded and transcribed verbatim. A directed content approach using theories of medical dominance and negotiated order was used to analyze the data. KEY RESULTS: The organization of clinical work in combination with clinical teaching influenced interprofessional interactions and the quality of discharge in this GIM unit. While organizational activities (orientation and rounds) and individual activities (e.g. role modeling, teaching) supported negotiations between medical residents and other healthcare professionals around discharge, participants had varied perspectives about their effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS: This study illuminates social factors and processes that require attention in order to address challenges with interprofessional collaboration and discharge in GIM. These findings have implications for medical education, workplace learning, patient safety and quality improvement.

Performance Data Advocacy for Continuing Professional Development in Health Professions.

ABSTRACT: Efforts to optimize continuing professional development (CPD) are ongoing and include advocacy for the use of clinician performance data. Several educational and quality-based frameworks support the use of performance data to achieve intended improvement outcomes. Although intuitively appealing, the role of performance data for CPD has been uncertain and its utility mainly assumed. In this Scholarly Perspective, the authors briefly review and trace arguments that have led to the conclusion that performance data are essential for CPD. In addition, they summarize and synthesize a recent and ongoing research program exploring the relationship physicians have with performance data. They draw on Collins, Onwuegbuzie, and Johnson's legitimacy model and Dixon-Woods' integrative approach to generate inferences and ways of moving forward. This interpretive approach encourages questioning or raising of assumptions about related concepts and draws on the perspectives (i.e., interpretive work) of the research team to identify the most salient points to guide future work. The authors identify 6 stimuli for future programs of research intended to support broader and better integration of performance data for CPD. Their aims are to contribute to the discourse on data advocacy for CPD by linking conceptual, methodologic, and analytic processes and to stimulate discussion on how to proceed on the issue of performance data for CPD purposes. They hope to move the field from a discussion on the utility of data for CPD to deeper integration of relevant conceptual frameworks.

Positioning continuing education: boundaries and intersections between the domains continuing education, knowledge translation, patient safety and quality improvement.

Public and professional concern about health care quality, safety and efficiency is growing. Continuing education, knowledge translation, patient safety and quality improvement have made concerted efforts to address these issues. However, a coordinated and integrated effort across these domains is lacking. This article explores and discusses the similarities and differences amongst the four domains in relation to their missions, stakeholders, methods, and limitations. This paper highlights the potential for a more integrated and collaborative partnership to promote networking and information sharing amongst the four domains. This potential rests on the premise that an integrated approach may result in the development and implementation of more holistic and effective interdisciplinary interventions. In conclusion, an outline of current research that is informed by the preliminary findings in this paper is also briefly discussed. The research concerns a comprehensive mapping of the relationships between the domains to gain an understanding of potential dissonances between how the domains represent themselves, their work and the work of their 'partner' domains.

Continuing medical education and quality improvement: a match made in heaven?

New models of continuing medical education (CME) seek not only to impart knowledge but to change physicians' behavior and even play a role in facilitating organizational improvement. These CME models thus share some of the same basic goals as the field of quality improvement (QI), namely behavioral change and systems redesign to improve patient outcomes. This article provides some practical ideas about how CME providers and QI experts may beneficially integrate these 2 fields. It outlines several models for harnessing the existing engagement in traditional CME to achieve the goal of equipping practitioners with knowledge and skills related to QI, while also addressing the widely recognized problems with traditional CME. The authors touch on possible incentives to make such integrated models of CME and QI attractive to practitioners.

Implementation of structured feedback in a psychiatry residency program in Canada: a qualitative analysis study.

Introduction: Structured feedback is important to support learner progression in competency-based medical education (CBME). R2C2 is an evidence-based four-phased feedback model that has been studied in a range of learner contexts; however, data on factors influencing implementation of this model are lacking. This pilot study describes implementation of the R2C2 model in a psychiatry CBME residency program, using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). Methods: The study was carried out in three phases: planning, implementation and evaluation. After receiving training, 15 supervisors used the R2C2 feedback model with residents. Semi-structured interviews explored (n = 10) supervisors' experience of the model. CFIR was used to identify factors that influence implementation of the R2C2 model when providing feedback to residents. Results: Qualitative data analysis revealed four key themes: Perceptions about the R2C2 model, Facilitators and barriers to its implementation, Fidelity to R2C2 model and Intersectionality related to the feedback. The CFIR implementation domains provided structure to the themes and subthemes. Conclusion: The R2C2 model is a helpful tool to provide structured feedback. Structure of the model, self-efficacy, in-house educational expertise, learning culture, organizational readiness, and training support are important facilitators of implementation. Further studies are needed to explore the learner's perspective and fidelity of this model.

A Qualitative Study to Understand the Cultural Factors That Influence Clinical Data Use for Continuing Professional Development.

INTRODUCTION: The use of data to inform lifelong learning has become increasingly important in continuing professional development (CPD) practice. Despite the potential benefits of data-driven learning, our understanding of how physicians engage in data-informed learning activities, particularly for CPD, remains unclear and warrants further study. The purpose of this study was to explore how physicians perceive cultural factors (individual, organizational, and systemic) that influence the use of clinical data to inform lifelong learning and self-initiated CPD activities. METHODS: This qualitative study is part of an explanatory sequential mixed-methods study examining data-informed learning. Participants were psychiatrists and general surgeons from Canada and the United States. Recruitment occurred between April 2019 and November 2019, and the authors conducted semistructured telephone interviews between May 2019 and November 2019. The authors performed thematic analysis using an iterative, inductive method of constant comparative analysis. RESULTS: The authors interviewed 28 physicians: 17 psychiatrists (61%) and 11 general surgeons (39%). Three major themes emerged from the continuous, iterative analysis of interview transcripts: (1) a strong relationship between data and trust, (2) a team-based approach to data-informed learning for practice improvement, and (3) a need for organizational support and advocacy to put data into practice. CONCLUSION: Building trust, taking a team-based approach, and engaging multiple stakeholders, such as data specialists and organizational leadership, may significantly improve the use of data-informed learning. The results are situated in the existing literature, and opportunities for future research are summarized.

Towards a sociology of knowledge translation: the importance of being dis-interested in knowledge translation.

Over the last 15 years there has been an increasingly energetic search for theories and definitions in the burgeoning area of knowledge translation (KT) in the health care context. The focus has been on the design and evaluation of KT activities with little attention to developing a considered KT theoretical/methodological approach that takes a more distanced critical inquiry to the studying of KT interventions. As such, what has been overlooked in the health professions KT literature to date is a suitably complex conceptualisation of translation that encompasses the multiplicity of KT interventions, the dynamic environments in which they are occurring, and the production of new knowledge which arises from their interactions. Attending to these epistemological issues; i.e. issues of the type of knowledge and how it is produced, is crucial to developing a relational understanding of the production and emergence of context-specific clinical knowledge and practice in KT processes. Such an approach is compared to the traditional KT evaluations by KT practitioners themselves of the compliance or non-compliance of individual and organisational behaviour change. A Sociology of KT (SKT) is proposed to complement the applied and evaluative research practice of implementing planned action KT activities. The purpose of a SKT basic research agenda is to understand both the context-specific nature of KT interventions and the epistemological premises of the activities of KT implementers themselves, in order to advance the science of KT and inform, complement and add to the success of applied and evaluative KT research in the future.

A mental health framework from the voices of refugees.

BACKGROUND: Refugee groups fleeing war and violence and resettling in the West are one of the population groups that are poorly understood. Understanding their mental health challenges and providing effective and evidence-based interventions continue to be formidable challenges. AIM: This study presents a refugee mental health framework [RMHF] that was developed to address the gaps in understanding and responding to the needs of refugee populations by prioritizing their voices, and incorporating lessons learned from working with these refugee communities into the development of the framework. METHOD: A RMHF was developed, presented and refined with input from refugee communities, multiple stakeholders and an expert panel. RESULTS/CONCLUSIONS: This paper presents the process and finalized framework, and discusses its utility as a mapping, planning and intervention tool in supporting refugee communities with their resettlement and promoting mental wellbeing.

Moving beyond 'think leadership, think white male': the contents and contexts of equity, diversity and inclusion in physician leadership programmes.

The lack of both women and physicians from groups under-represented in medicine (UIM) in leadership has become a growing concern in healthcare. Despite increasing recognition that diversity in physician leadership can lead to reduced health disparities, improved population health and increased innovation and creativity in organisations, progress toward this goal is slow. One strategy for increasing the number of women and UIM physician leaders has been to create professional development opportunities that include leadership training on equity, diversity and inclusivity (EDI). However, the extent to which these concepts are explored in physician leadership programming is not known. It is also not clear whether this EDI content challenges structural barriers that perpetuate the status quo of white male leadership. To explore these issues, we conducted an environmental scan by adapting Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review methodology to centre on three questions: How is EDI currently presented in physician leadership programming? How have these programmes been evaluated in the peer-reviewed literature? How is EDI presented and discussed by the wider medical community? We scanned institutional websites for physician leadership programmes, analysed peer-reviewed literature and examined material from medical education conferences. Our findings indicate that despite an apparent increase in the discussion of EDI concepts in the medical community, current physician leadership programming is built on theories that fail to move beyond race and gender as explanatory factors for a lack of diversity in physician leadership. To address inequity, physician leadership curricula should aim to equip physicians to identify and address the structural factors that perpetuate disparities.

Exploring Systemic Influences on Data-Informed Learning: Document Review of Policies, Procedures, and Legislation from Canada and the United States.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the support for and benefits of data-driven learning, physician engagement is variable. This study explores systemic influences of physician use of data for performance improvement in continuing professional development (CPD) by analyzing and interpreting data sources from organizational and institutional documents. METHODS: The document analysis is the third phase of a mixed-methods explanatory sequential study examining cultural factors that influence data-informed learning. A gray literature search was conducted for organizations both in Canada and the United States. The analysis contains nonparticipant observations from professional learning bodies and medical specialty organizations with established roles within the CPD community known to lead and influence change in CPD. RESULTS: Sixty-two documents were collected from 20 Canadian and American organizations. The content analysis identified the following: (1) a need to advocate for data-informed self-assessment and team-based learning strategies; (2) privacy and confidentiality concerns intersect at the point of patient data collection and physician-generated outcomes and need to be acknowledged; (3) a nuanced data strategy approach for each medical specialty is needed. DISCUSSION: This analysis broadens our understanding of system-level factors that influence the extent to which health information custodians and physicians are motivated to engage with data for learning.

The Postoperative Pain Assessment Skills pilot trial.

UNLABELLED: BACKGROUND/ OBJECTIVES: Pain-related misbeliefs among health care professionals (HCPs) are common and contribute to ineffective postoperative pain assessment. While standardized patients (SPs) have been effectively used to improve HCPs' assessment skills, not all centres have SP programs. The present equivalence randomized controlled pilot trial examined the efficacy of an alternative simulation method - deteriorating patient-based simulation (DPS) - versus SPs for improving HCPs' pain knowledge and assessment skills. METHODS: Seventy-two HCPs were randomly assigned to a 3 h SP or DPS simulation intervention. Measures were recorded at baseline, immediate postintervention and two months postintervention. The primary outcome was HCPs' pain assessment performance as measured by the postoperative Pain Assessment Skills Tool (PAST). Secondary outcomes included HCPs knowledge of pain-related misbeliefs, and perceived satisfaction and quality of the simulation. These outcomes were measured by the Pain Beliefs Scale (PBS), the Satisfaction with Simulated Learning Scale (SSLS) and the Simulation Design Scale (SDS), respectively. Student's t tests were used to test for overall group differences in postintervention PAST, SSLS and SDS scores. One-way analysis of covariance tested for overall group differences in PBS scores. RESULTS: DPS and SP groups did not differ on post-test PAST, SSLS or SDS scores. Knowledge of pain-related misbeliefs was also similar between groups. CONCLUSIONS: These pilot data suggest that DPS is an effective simulation alternative for HCPs' education on postoperative pain assessment, with improvements in performance and knowledge comparable with SP-based simulation. An equivalence trial to examine the effectiveness of deteriorating patient-based simulation versus standardized patients is warranted.

A scoping review to improve conceptual clarity of interprofessional interventions.

Interprofessional education (IPE) and interprofessional collaboration (IPC) have been identified in health education and health care as playing an important role in improving health care services and patient outcomes. Despite a growth in the amount of research in these areas, poor conceptualizations of these interprofessional activities have persisted. Given the conceptual challenges, a scoping review of the interprofessional field was undertaken to map the literature available in order to identify key concepts, theories and sources of evidence. The objective of this review was to develop a theoretically based and empirically tested understanding of IPE and IPC. A total of 104 studies met the criteria and were included for analysis. Studies were examined for their approach to conceptualization, implementation, and assessment of their interprofessional interventions. Half of the studies were used for interprofessional framework development and half for framework testing and refinement. The final framework contains three main types of interprofessional interventions: IPE; interprofessional practice; and interprofessional organization; and describes the nature of each type of intervention by stage, participants, intervention type, interprofessional objectives, and outcomes. The outcomes are delineated as intermediate, patient, and system outcomes. There was very limited use of theory in the studies, and thus theoretical aspects could not be incorporated into the framework. This study offers an initial step in mapping out the interprofessional field and outlines possible ways forward for future research and practice.

The ties that bind: a network approach to creating a programme in faculty development.

CONTEXT: Current trends in medical education reflect the changing health care environment. An increasingly large and diverse student population, a move to more distributed models of education, greater community involvement and an emphasis on social accountability, interprofessional education and student-centred approaches to learning necessitate new approaches to faculty development to help faculty members respond effectively to this rapidly changing landscape. METHODS: Drawing upon the tenets of network theory and the broader organisational literature, we propose a 'fishhook' model of faculty development programme formation. The model is based on seven key factors which supported the successful formation of a centralised programme for faculty development that addressed many of the contemporary issues in medical education. These factors include: environmental readiness; commitment and vision of a mobiliser; recruitment of key stakeholders and leaders to committees; formation of a collaborative network structure; accumulation of networking capital; legitimacy, and flexibility. DISCUSSION: Our aim in creating this model is to provide a guide for other medical schools to consider when developing similar programmes. The model can be adapted to reflect the local goals, settings and cultures of other medical education contexts.