A framework for integrating interprofessional education curriculum in the health sciences.

CONTEXT: Traditionally, the structures of health professional education in Canada and elsewhere have been largely based on "silos" in which health professionals are educated in relative isolation to one another. The curriculum content and structure has followed strict disciplinary lines. Recent commissions, committees and policy documents in Canada have identified the importance of reshaping educational preparation and the professional training of health care professionals (Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada, 2002; Health Council of Canada, 2005). OBJECTIVES: This brief communication describes an interprofessional curricular approach that combines characteristics of Barr et al.'s (2005) extracurricular and crossbar models of interprofessional education curriculum. METHODS: An interprofessional education curriculum that combines principles of an integrative, continuous, early-to-late and blended learning approach. DISCUSSION: The curricular approach supports exposing students to interprofessional education at an early stage in their training and then to continue with regular reinforcement. Another guiding principle is that interprofessional education is integrative rather than supplementary to the existing core curriculum. Early evaluation results suggest favourable satisfaction amongst students and faculty as well as significant effect on attitudes toward interprofessional teamwork and education. An ongoing evaluation is continuing based upon the various levels of Freeth et al.'s (2002) interprofessional education evaluation framework.

An eclectic model for evaluating web-based continuing medical education courseware systems.

World Wide Web and compact disc-read only memory technologies have introduced new prospects for delivering continuing medical education (CME) to rural and remote physicians. However, evidence concerning the effectiveness of these technologies in providing CME, and approaches to their evaluation, is limited. The rationale for this study was to design a model for evaluating the effectiveness of computer-mediated CME courseware. An eclectic, evaluation-planning matrix was designed by selecting various concepts from the literature and was used in planning and developing the evaluation model. The model was field-tested by evaluating a computer-mediated courseware program on dermatological office procedures, and a meta-evaluation was conducted to assess the effectiveness of the evaluation methods and procedures. The findings suggest that the model was useful in collecting data to inform decision making and to improve the instructional product. The field test results revealed that computer-mediated instruction was effective in delivering CME at a distance.

Web-based continuing medical education. (II): Evaluation study of computer-mediated continuing medical education.

BACKGROUND: Over the years, various distance learning technologies and methods have been applied to the continuing medical education needs of rural and remote physicians. They have included audio teleconferencing, slow scan imaging, correspondence study, and compressed videoconferencing. The recent emergence and growth of Internet, World Wide Web (Web), and compact disk read-only-memory (CD-ROM) technologies have introduced new opportunities for providing continuing education to the rural medical practitioner. This evaluation study assessed the instructional effectiveness of a hybrid computer-mediated courseware delivery system on dermatologic office procedures. METHODS: A hybrid delivery system merges Web documents, multimedia, computer-mediated communications, and CD-ROMs to enable self-paced instruction and collaborative learning. Using a modified pretest to post-test control group study design, several evaluative criteria (participant reaction, learning achievement, self-reported performance change, and instructional transactions) were assessed by various qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. RESULTS: This evaluation revealed that a hybrid computer-mediated courseware system was an effective means for increasing knowledge (p < .05) and improving self-reported competency (p < .05) in dermatologic office procedures, and that participants were very satisfied with the self-paced instruction and use of asynchronous computer conferencing for collaborative information sharing among colleagues.

Web-based continuing medical education (I): field test of a hybrid computer-mediated instructional delivery system.

BACKGROUND: The Internet and the World Wide Web (the Web) present exciting new possibilities for distributing educational materials at a distance and facilitating collaborative learning among geographically isolated physicians. This article provides a brief overview of the Web as an instructional delivery platform and discusses its strengths and weaknesses as a potential medium for enhancing distance learning opportunities for rural and remote physicians. It also describes an innovative hybrid instructional delivery model that was field tested by the Telemedicine Centre to determine its efficiency and effectiveness for providing Web-based instruction. A hybrid model merges the Web and CD-ROMs (compact disk read-only memory) to use several of the more valuable instructional components of Web-based education (i.e., multimedia, interactive forms, hypermedia, and computer-mediated communications). The results of the field test indicate that the hybrid delivery model was an efficient means for delivering computer-mediated continuing medical education instruction on dermatologic office procedures to a group of rural physicians in low telecommunication bandwidth regions.

A study of rural women's satisfaction with a breast cancer self-help network.

The impact of breast cancer on the emotional and social health of women and their families is an important issue for the cancer field. Nevertheless, many patients do not avail themselves of support programmes. In rural communities there is often a lack of services, which, for many, leads to a perception of 'being alone' in the struggle to become better. This paper reports an evaluation of a pilot project to facilitate a self-help peer support group network: an extensive provincial audio teleconferencing network for rural breast cancer survivors, established by the Telemedicine Centre of the Memorial University of Newfoundland. A satisfaction questionnaire was distributed to participants in the pilot programme. Responses suggested that they were very satisfied with the use of audio teleconferencing for the facilitation of a social support programme. The programme appeared to help bridge the isolation gap that rural women with breast cancer often experience. The results have implications for the provision of self-help social support services through audio teleconferencing, as well as for the quality of life and wellbeing of rural women.