Continuing professional development (CPD) system development, implementation, evaluation and sustainability for healthcare professionals in low- and lower-middle-income countries: a rapid scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Policymakers and program developers in low-and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs) are increasingly seeking evidence-based information and guidance on how to successfully develop and implement continuing professional development (CPD) systems. We conducted a rapid scoping review to map and synthesize what is known regarding the development, implementation, evaluation and sustainability of CPD systems for healthcare professionals in LLMICs. METHODS: We searched MEDLINE, CINAHL and Web of Science. Reference lists were screened and a cited reference search of included articles was conducted. Supplementary information on the CPD systems identified in the articles was also identified via an online targeted grey literature search. English, French and Spanish literature published from 2011 to 2021 were considered. Data were extracted and combined and summarized according to country/region and healthcare profession via tables and narrative text. RESULTS: We included 15 articles and 23 grey literature sources. Africa was the region most represented followed by South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The literature most often referred to CPD systems for nurses and midwives; CPD systems for physicians were frequently referred to as well. Findings show that leadership and buy-in from key stakeholders, including government bodies and healthcare professional organizations, and a framework are essential for the development, implementation and sustainability of a CPD system in a LLMIC. The guiding framework should incorporate a regulatory perspective, as well as a conceptual lens (that informs CPD objectives and methods), and should consider contextual factors (support for CPD, healthcare context and population health needs). In terms of important steps to undertake, these include: a needs assessment; drafting of a policy, which details the regulations (laws/norms), the CPD requirements and an approach for monitoring, including an accreditation mechanism; a financing plan; identification and production of appropriate CPD materials and activities; a communication strategy; and an evaluation process. CONCLUSION: Leadership, a framework and a clearly delineated plan that is responsive to the needs and context of the setting, are essential for the development, implementation and sustainability of a CPD system for healthcare professionals in a LLMIC.

A conceptual framework of student professionalization for health professional education and research.

OBJECTIVES: To present a conceptual framework of student professionalization for health professional education and research. METHODS: Synthesis and discussion of a program of research on competency-based education. RESULTS: Competency-based education relies on active, situation-based group learning strategies to prepare students to become health professionals who are connected to patient and population needs. Professionalization is understood as a dynamic process of imagining, becoming, and being a member of a health profession. It rests on the evolution of three interrelated dimensions: professional competencies, professional culture, and professional identity. Professionalization occurs throughout students' encounters with meaningful learning experiences that involve three core components: the roles students experience in situations bounded within specific contexts. Educational practices conducive to professionalization include active learning, reflection, and feedback. CONCLUSIONS: This conceptual framework drives a research agenda aimed at understanding how students become health professional and how learning experiences involving action, reflection, and feedback foster that process and the advancement of professional practices.

Quality Standards of Nursing Care for the Use of Chemical Restraints: A Realist Review.

BACKGROUND: The use of chemical restraints (CRs) in health care facilities is a complex intervention that raises questions about its effectiveness and whether it is safe and patient oriented. PURPOSE: This review aims to gather nursing quality standards for the use of CR through an innovative method of knowledge synthesis, the realist review, to support the development of a quality evaluation tool. METHODS: A realist review method was chosen. RESULTS: An operational definition of chemical restraint is proposed, a concept seen as synonymous with the management of behavioral symptoms by pharmacological agents with sedative proprieties. Twenty-eight quality standards were identified and presented in a theoretical model. CONCLUSIONS: These quality standards will allow the evaluation of practices from a nursing perspective for the use of CR in health care settings.

Learning theories and tools for the assessment of core nursing competencies in simulation: A theoretical review.

AIM: To identify the theories used to explain learning in simulation and to examine how these theories guided the assessment of learning outcomes related to core competencies in undergraduate nursing students. BACKGROUND: Nurse educators face the challenge of making explicit the outcomes of competency-based education, especially when competencies are conceptualized as holistic and context dependent. DESIGN: Theoretical review. DATA SOURCES: Research papers (N = 182) published between 1999-2015 describing simulation in nursing education. REVIEW METHODS: Two members of the research team extracted data from the papers, including theories used to explain how simulation could engender learning and tools used to assess simulation outcomes. Contingency tables were created to examine the associations between theories, outcomes and tools. RESULTS: Some papers (N = 79) did not provide an explicit theory. The 103 remaining papers identified one or more learning or teaching theories; the most frequent were the National League for Nursing/Jeffries Simulation Framework, Kolb's theory of experiential learning and Bandura's social cognitive theory and concept of self-efficacy. Students' perceptions of simulation, knowledge and self-confidence were the most frequently assessed, mainly via scales designed for the study where they were used. Core competencies were mostly assessed with an observational approach. CONCLUSION: This review highlighted the fact that few studies examined the use of simulation in nursing education through learning theories and via assessment of core competencies. It also identified observational tools used to assess competencies in action, as holistic and context-dependent constructs.

Identification and Analysis of Factors Contributing to the Reduction in Seclusion and Restraint for a Population with Intellectual Disability.

BACKGROUND: A cohort of 11 patients with an intellectual disability and a psychiatric diagnosis present severe behavioural disorders in psychiatric hospital of Quebec in 2009. Control-measure use for this clientele has now been reduced. How do management personnel, families and care teams explain the changes? What clinical interventions did management and care providers implement that contributed to the reduction? METHOD: A retrospective case study was conducted. Five focus groups were held with people involved in their care, and the patient files were examined. RESULTS: The factors contributing to this change were the cohesion of the care providers, the involvement of the families and the efforts to determine the function of the behaviour. IMPLICATIONS: This study may inspire other care teams to try new approaches in dealing with patients with severe behavioural disorders. Also, the model of factors and interventions supporting a reduction in seclusion and restraint measures may inspire future studies.

Post-Seclusion and/or Restraint Review in Psychiatry: A Scoping Review.

CONTEXT: It has been suggested that after an incident in which a patient has been placed in seclusion or in restraints, an intervention should be conducted after the event to ensure continuity of care and prevent recurrences. Several terms are used, and various models have been suggested for post-seclusion and/or restraint review; however, the intervention has never been precisely defined. OBJECTIVE: This article presents a scoping review on post-seclusion and/or restraint review in psychiatry to examine existing models and the theoretical foundations on which they rely. METHOD: A scoping review of academic articles (CINAHL and Medline database) yielded 28 articles. RESULTS: Post-seclusion and/or restraint review has its origins in the concepts of debriefing in psychology and reflective practice in nursing. We propose a typology in terms of the intervention target, including the patient, the health care providers, or both. IMPLICATIONS: The analysis found that the review ought to involve both the patient and the care providers using an approach that fosters reflexivity among all those involved in order to change the practice of seclusion in psychiatric settings. ACCESSIBLE SUMMARY: • Established literature documented widely that seclusion and restraint has adverse physical and psychological consequences for patient and for health care providers. • Post-seclusion and/or restraint review is promoted in most guidelines, but there is no scoping or systematic review yet on the subject. • The origins of post-seclusion and/or restraint review are in the concepts of debriefing in psychology and reflective practice in nursing. • We propose that post-seclusion and/or restraint review should focus on both patients and health care providers.• Systematic post-seclusion and/or restraint review should be performed after each event, and its effects on patients and on mental health professionals should be rigorously assessed.

[The Humanistic Model of Nursing Care - UdeM : an innovative and pragmatic perspective]. / Le Modèle humaniste des soins infirmiers -UdeM : perspective novatrice et pragmatique.

As in many other countries, Québec is not immune to healthcare reforms, which can unfortunately hinder quality of care as well as induce some dehumanization, both for the patients and the healthcare professionals. Thus, the « Humanistic Model of Nursing Care - UdeM ¼ (HMNC-UdeM) aspires to offer an innovative perspective that aims at improving the quality and the safety of care, in addition to satisfaction and well-being for both patients and nurses. While respecting their theoretical influences, the authors present their vision of the central concepts of the discipline and the Model's key concepts, seeking to make them more understandable, accessible, and applicable in nurses' daily practice. Therefore, the aim of this article is to raise awareness of the Model into the nursing community, to promote its implantation in nursing's spheres of activities, in addition to demonstrate its applicability and impact in nursing research. It appears that this model is promising for the renewal and the development of humanistic interventions for patients' care.

[Sharing experiential knowledge: Focus on the contribution of patient partners in nursing education]. / Partage du savoir expérientiel : regard sur la contribution des patients partenaires d'enseignement en sciences infirmières.

OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to identify the main scientific literature on patient involvement in the education of health professionals. METHODS: A literature review with keywords ''patient partner' OR 'service user' AND 'education'' in the CINAHL database identified 26 articles related to the involvement of patient partners in the training and education of health professionals. RESULTS: The presence of patient partners is positively assessed. Teachers would be able to humanize and to nuance theoretical concepts by presenting people living with a mental health problem. Students have new skills, change their attitude positively by being more aware of the factors of stigmatization in mental health and their perspective on the patient would broaden by taking in consideration the health in its entirety. Finally, patient partners, by their unveiling, would feel the therapeutic effects, a sense of pride to be recognized as peers and would exercise a civic contribution by participating in the training of health professionals. However, the literature does not allow these assertions to be evidence-based. CONCLUSION: Some challenges remain for genuine involvement of patients beginning with their integration at every levels of development in training and education programs and a better balance between scientific knowledge and experiential knowledge.

Clinical characteristics and service use of incarcerated males with severe mental disorders: a comparative case-control study with patients found not criminally responsible.

Since the drop in the bed capacity of civil psychiatric hospitals, an increase in the bed capacity of forensic psychiatric care and prison units has been reported in the United States and Europe. However, in Canada, a decrease in the number of people with severe mental illness (SMI) during the last two decades in penitentiaries has been reported. At the same time, an increase in individuals found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCRMD) was observed in forensic hospitals. The aim of this study is to compare incarcerated severely mentally ill (I-SMI) individuals with forensic-hospitalized SMI individuals in terms of their clinical profiles and service use in the province of Quebec (Canada). A case-control study design was selected using a sample of 44 I-SMI individuals and 59 forensic-hospitalized SMI individuals. Important findings include the following: I-SMI persons had less schooling; they more often reported suicide attempts and violent and non-violent crimes; and they had a higher level of comorbidity involving Cluster B personality disorders and substance-use disorders. Forensic-hospitalized SMI persons were more likely to have been receiving psychiatric follow-up before hospitalization. The final logistic regression model showed that lifetime suicide attempts, non-violent crimes, and psychopathic traits were higher among I-SMI individuals than among forensic-hospitalized SMI individuals. In contrast, receiving regular psychiatric follow-up was associated with forensic-hospitalized SMI individuals. Differences in psychopathological characteristics and the use of mental health services were found for I-SMI persons. More research is needed to determine which new initiatives might be efficacious in addressing the mental health needs of I-SMI individuals.

[The role of families in the Quebec mental health system]. / Le rôle des familles au sein du système de santé mentale au Québec.

Purpose. This paper aims to summarize the current situation regarding the role of families of persons with mental disorders within the mental health system in Quebec.Methods. We made a research in the most recent and pertinent papers or books regarding: 1) the history of the family involvement in the mental health system in Quebec; 2) the present situation of these families and the models that we can see and 3) identify in recent governmental or research documents recommendations regarding a greater empowerment of the families in the mental health system.Results. The research provides a historical perspective to the roles occupied by families. First the family was described as a causal agent; the work of the psychoanalyst Freud described the family unit as a source of conflicts in the areas of affect and sexual dynamics, and which results in the appearance of psychiatric symptoms. Later, this view of a causal agent came both from the point of view of genetic and from expressed emotions. In the 70's new perspectives such as general systems theory (von Bertalanffy, 1968), described the family as responsive to mental disorder of one of its members rather than a responsible agent. With the deinstitutionalization movement, the family was perceived as a source of solutions for persons with mental illness, but also as persons who can live some burden. This subject became well described and a several studies reported about adverse effects of caring for a person with mental disorder on the health, well-being and feeling of caregiver burden. In the 90's, some government action plans called for the relationship between the family and the health system as a partnership. Also, families want to be involved in decisions about care and to be informed about the diagnosis and treatment options. ( Lefley et Wasow, 1993)A new model developed by FFAPAMM that identifies three main roles enables to contextualize the current role in the current system. This model, called CAP lists and describes three roles of families that, if they are dependent on the past, continue to mingle in our time. These roles are:Accompanist: the role imposed by being near a person with mental illness (Fradet, 2012). As an accompanist, the family needs to establish relationships with health professionals. Accompanists want to be considered by stakeholders and be respected in their desire to share information and participate in decisions.Client: this is the role that derives from the accompanist when the caregiver receives care services for its psychological or physical problems related to the fact support a sick person.Partner: it is relative to the involvement (or not) the role of family members in the organization of care. It is a role of participation and decision-making. In this context, we also speak of participation in the consultation mechanisms.Recommendations from a Quebec research project and a report of the Commission on Mental Health of Canada will consider a future where the needs and aspirations of families will be taken into account in mental health general services, short term health care, community mental health services. There are also some guidelines regarding education for professionals about the needs of families and about changing politics.Conclusion. There exists in all associations of families of person with mental disorders, training on topics such as how to behave towards different mental disorders or aggressiveness near reached. A project of the Douglas Institute has hired a family member to the emergency room to help families better manage this often difficult time and to facilitate communication with stakeholders. Another project called "Learning to come closer without aggression" has helped more than 200 family members undergo training inspired by the Omega approach, which helps them better manage their own behavior in situations of aggression with their loved one.

The experience of seclusion and restraint in psychiatric settings: perspectives of patients.

Many studies report that the use of seclusion and restraint (SR) is experienced negatively by patients who experience feelings of shame, helplessness, and humiliation, and may relive previous trauma events. Since 2000, in Québec, exceptional measures like SR have been framed by a protocol. This protocol provides health care teams with guidelines for relieving, containing, and reducing the suffering caused by SR. We have no knowledge, however, about the views of patients regarding application of the protocol. This study aims to understand the perception of patients regarding application of the SR protocol. For this purpose, a questionnaire was presented to patients (n = 50) who experienced an episode of SR in a psychiatric hospital in Canada. Results show that patients had a nuanced perception of SR: Some felt that SR was a helpful measure, while others felt that SR was not a helpful measure. Patients tended to agree with statements related to the comfort and safety of seclusion rooms and the meeting of their physical needs. Regarding support, they suggested relational, drug, and environmental interventions to prevent seclusion. Finally, nearly all patients perceived that the health care team did not follow-up with the patients after the experience; such follow-up is essential for reconstructing a sometimes confusing event.

[Role of families of homeless persons with mental disorders : retrospective and prospective view of relationships]. / Le rôle des familles de personnes en situation d'itinérance et souffrant de troubles mentaux : un regard rétrospectif et prospectif des liens.

This paper explores the experience of families supporting a homeless relative with mental illness. The authors investigate the types of support offered by families; they also examine the relational and personal dimensions which can support a redefining of the role and consequently a modulation of the level of support. Using a qualitative research, semi-structured interviews were realized with 14 family members. The results indicate that housing and the financial support are the types of support most frequently stopped while the emotional and the social support tend to be pursued. The control in the relation, the emotionalism and the perception of future appear as important element for the initiation of a role redefining process.

[The development of clinical reasoning skills and leadership: personal factors and organizational factors]. / Le développement continu des compétences de raisonnement clinique et de leadership: facteurs personnels et facteurs organisationnels.

Continuing education of newly graduated nurses (NGN) depends on several factors related to the characteristics of skills to be developed, the target population and the organizational context. Few studies describe both how nurses develop their skills and how institutions promote this development. The objectives of this manuscript are to (1) describe the behaviors that the NGN use to develop their reasoning skills and leadership and (2) document the organizational elements that facilitate this development. Method. Individual interviews were conducted with nurses (n = 34) using a grid of semistructured interviews and two group interviews were conducted with nurses (n = 7) and managers (n = 19) in two teaching hospitals in eastern Canada. The results show that nurses develop mainly by reflecting on their professional practice in their workplace. However, the lack of time for reflection in the workspace is a considerable obstacle while managerial leadership is an important asset.

[Project evaluation of nursing interventions: an algorithm to support the practice of clinicians]. / Evaluation de projets d'interventions infirmières: un algorithme pour soutenir la pratique des cliniciennes.

It is recognized that nurses regularly have to adapt their clinical practice compared to new scientific breakthroughs. However, changes in practice are possible by the implementation of clinical projects but can sometimes be long and difficult to achieve in health care settings, given the context of care or the profile of the clientele, the care organization, work organization, etc. An algorithmic approach (i.e., sequence of actions) to support nurses in the evaluation of new nursing intervention projects, including other members of the interdisciplinary team, researchers, and patients and their relatives, has been developed. This algorithm considers the clinical environment in which the project will operationalize nursing interventions and involves five steps: 1) identification and description of a care problem to solve or a care practice to improve; 2) the development or adaptation of appropriate nursing intervention, and 3) the choice of evaluation design for this nursing intervention, and 4) testing of the intervention and 5) implementation and reflection on the process.

Suicidality and mood disorders in psychiatric emergency patients: Results from SBQ-R.

Patients with mood disorders are at high risk of suicidality, and emergency departments (ED) are essential in the management of this risk. This study aims to (1) describe the suicidal thoughts and behaviours of patients with mood disorders who come to ED; (2) assess the psychometric properties of the Suicidal Behaviours Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R) in a psychiatric ED; and (3) determine the best predictors of suicidality for these patients. A total of 300 participants with mood disorders recruited for the Signature Bank of the Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal (IUSMM) were retained. Suicidality was assessed using the SBQ-R. Other clinical and demographic details were recorded. Bivariate analyses, correlations and multivariate regression analyses were conducted. SBQ-R's internal consistency, construct and convergent validities were also tested. In the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), 53.3% of the sample stated they had suicidal or self-harm thoughts in the last 2 weeks. The mean score obtained at the SBQ-R was 8.3. Multivariate analysis found that SBQ-R scores were associated with depressive symptoms and substance use, especially alcohol, accounting for 44.3% of the model variance. Cronbach's alpha was 0.81 [0.78, 0.84] and factor loadings for items 1-4 were 0.68, 0.88, 0.54, and 0.85, respectively. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the model fit the data well. The SBQ-R is a brief and valid instrument that can easily be used in busy emergency departments to assess suicide risk. Depressive symptoms and alcohol use shall also be assessed, as they are determinants of increased risk of suicidality.

Predictive validity and psychiatric nursing staff's perception of the clinical usefulness of the French version of the Dynamic Appraisal of Situational Aggression.

This study seeks to evaluate the predictive validity of the French version of the Dynamic Appraisal of Situational Aggression (DASAfr) and psychiatric nurses' perceptions of the clinical usefulness of the scale. The study was conducted in a 12-bed psychiatric intensive care unit in a large adult general psychiatric hospital. We found that the total score on the DASAfr has acceptable predictive accuracy for aggression against others and against staff and for seclusion with restraints; predictive accuracy was poorer for aggression against objects. Moreover, the nurses though the scale would be useful to their practice; and, indeed, the team still uses the DASAfr.

Assessment and care of individuals at risk of suicide in Emergency Department: The SecUrgence protocol.

Almost half (48,5%) of all individuals who die by suicide visited the Emergency Department (ED) in the year preceding their death by suicide and for almost a third (29,5%) of these individuals, the ED visit occurred within the month preceding their death by suicide. The ED is a key location for suicide prevention. The aim of this study was to develop and reach a consensus on the SecUrgence Protocol, a clinical protocol that intends to assess and provide care for individuals at risk of suicide that present themselves to the ED. This project was conducted in 3 stages: 1) Review of the literature, 2) Development of the list of the protocol statements by a first panel of experts, and 3) Validation, using the Delphi consensus method, on the final statements to include in the SecUrgence Protocol by a second panel of experts. Two rounds of the Delphi questionnaire were conducted until a final consensus of over 75% was reached. The SecUrgence Protocol is a first scientific step towards improving suicide prevention in the ED in Quebec as it was validated by a rigorous research process that included a consensus by all key stakeholders.

Measuring Quality of Care Received by Suicide Attempters in the Emergency Department.

CONTEXT: Audits conducted on medical records have been traditionally used in hospitals to assess and improve quality of medical care but have yet to be properly integrated and used for suicide prevention purposes. We aimed to (1) revise a quality of care grid and adapt it to an adult population of suicide attempters and (2) identify quality of care deficits in managing adult suicide attempters at the emergency department (ED) in two different Montreal university hospitals. METHODS: An existing checklist for quality of medical and social care in the ED was adapted. A systematic search and data extraction of all suicide attempters in two different Montreal university hospitals were then conducted. All identified individuals who attempted suicide were fully reviewed and quality of care was assessed. RESULTS: Eleven criteria were kept by the expert focus group in the revised grid that was then used to rate 369 individuals that attempted suicide. Suicide risk assessment was only present in 63% of attempters before discharge. Although family history was documented for 90% of attempters, in only 41% of the cases were interviews conducted with relatives. Most discharged patient lacked proper follow-up considering 11% of their relatives received written information on resources in case of need. DISCUSSION: Paper records may be used to systematically assess the quality of care for suicide attempters seen in ED. Results reiterate the need for better suicide prevention strategies for these individuals. The checklist proved to be an excellent assessment of best practices or identification of possible improvements.

PhD nursing students' changing needs relative to the comprehensive doctoral examination.

Most doctoral curriculums in Canada and in the United States include a mandatory comprehensive examination (CE) meant to evaluate, after a year, the students' ability to conduct research. Although the format differs between faculties, the CE has nevertheless been described by students as anxiety provoking because in most cases, a failure terminates doctoral training. A lack of scientific literature on the experiences of PhD nursing students with the CE motivated us to explore these experience and the students' needs with regard to this exam. For that purpose, a descriptive qualitative research study was conducted at a nursing faculty in Canada. Focus groups and individual semi-directed interviews were conducted with 15 PhD nursing students. Data analysis suggests that PhD nursing students' needs evolve throughout their doctoral studies. Initially, their needs focus on understanding the general process of the CE, such as its purpose and the possible outcomes. These needs gradually shift toward specific issues, such day-to-day organization during the CE. Finally, participants express frustration about variability in the support received and in the evaluation process. Results offer insights into strategies that can be implemented to optimize PhD nursing students' experience and to develop a feeling of support regarding the CE.

The nursing decision making process in seclusion episodes in a psychiatric facility.

This study explores and describes nursing interventions performed during episodes of seclusion with or without restraint in a psychiatric facility and examines the relationship between the interventions' local protocols and best-practice guidelines. Twenty-four nurses working in a psychiatric facility were interviewed about the nursing interventions they performed before, during, and after an episode of seclusion with or without using restraint. Analysis of the data reveals that the interventions meet quality standards. However, nursing practice would be further refined by conducting post-event reviews, especially by discussing how a client's aggressive behaviour is to be understood.