Interprofessional Active Learning Environment Employing Virtual Reality Simulation to Promote Telehealth Practices and Psychosocial Well-Being.

ISSUE: As healthcare educators, we must continually evaluate innovative technologies and practices that may assist us in meeting the complex needs of individuals. In this study, we sought to address some barriers associated with using virtual reality (VR) to assess an interprofessional team of students' knowledge of and practice with telehealth and their ability to address psychosocial health. METHODS: A non-experimental, descriptive, embedded (explanatory quan/QUAL) mixed methods design of 240 students enrolled in the IPE Journey of Professional Trans-formation, Fall 2022. OUTCOMES: Several themes emerged from the students' responses; the experience prompted a recognition of the need for clear communication, both verbal and non-verbal, in coordinating person-centered care. There was a significant decrease in Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Scale (ICCAS) (z=2.54, p=0.01), suggesting that students may have overestimated their interprofessional collaboration and communication abilities. There was no significant change in Transgender Knowledge, Attitude, and Belief Scale (T-KAB) and Telehealth Confidence Survey (TCS) scores. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that an interprofessional active learning experience using an avatar-based simulation case can facilitate in meaningful interdisciplinary teaming and promote the quality of a transgender person's well-being by employing telehealth and person-centered care practices.

Lessons Learned After Integrating the Five Steps of Evidence-Based Practice Into a Doctor of Physical Therapy Curriculum.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Teaching evidence-based practice (EBP) has become a standard curricular goal for Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) education programs. In 2014, the American Physical Therapy Association published a consensus document to provide guidance on curricular objectives for teaching EBP in entry-level DPT programs. The document reinforced the need to promote skills related to the efficient and critical consumption of published evidence. The purpose of this case report is to describe the collaborative process of integrating the EBP guidelines in one university's DPT curriculum. CASE DESCRIPTION: Faculty of EBP courses, in collaboration with a health sciences librarian, worked collaboratively to review and redesign the courses that teach and promote the skills required for an efficient EBP entry-level clinician, using the EBP guidelines as a reference document. Integrating the guidelines, specifically the five steps of teaching EBP, required creating a curricular thread for both the didactic and the clinical portions of the program, the development of standardized tools to optimize the students' learning, promotion of literature search and appraisal skills, and designing instructional activities, assignments, and standardized rubrics. OUTCOMES: The effectiveness of the curricular integration process was evaluated using students' self-efficacy with the acquired EBP skills. Data indicated students who participated in the modified curriculum perceived to have achieved all terminal objectives for each of the EBP steps. DISCUSSION: This case study highlights the benefits of progressive and early exposure to EBP to facilitate integration into clinical practice. Additionally, it reinforced the idea of EBP as a learnable skill that requires practice and experiential learning. CONCLUSION: It is feasible to successfully integrate EBP guidelines into a physical therapist program.

Interprofessional Education Module on Professionalism, Ethics, and Teamwork: Insights from Program Review Data of Health Professions Students.

Formal interprofessional education provides health sciences students the opportunity to develop their knowledge in teamwork, communication, collaboration, and ethics. The purpose of this paper is to describe interprofessional students' perceptions of professionalism, ethics, and teamwork before and after being immersed in an interprofessional education Module on these topics. Through a program review process, pre- and post-Module survey responses from 10 interprofessional students were randomly reviewed by five faculty from different health sciences disciplines. Results from the thematic analysis of those open-ended surveys revealed students evolved in their perceptions of all three areas of professionalism, ethics, and teamwork following participation in the interprofessional Module. For professionalism, students' insights reflected a broader understanding of their roles as a professional not just individually, but on an interpersonal and societal level. Students' descriptions of ethical behavior also expanded beyond the importance of ethics within one's scope of practice to integrate cultural differences to ethically promote patient well-being. Lastly, post-survey responses indicated students' deeper understanding of the importance of teamwork to reduce errors and increase patient outcomes by working towards a common goal. The themes that emerged from this program review provided support for continued interprofessional activities to address professionalism, ethics, and teamwork.

Academicians and Neurologic Physical Therapy Residents Partner to Expand Clinical Reflection Using the SOLO Taxonomy: A Novel Approach.

Creating curriculums that develop physical therapy (PT) students into evidenced-based, critically reflective, entry-level practitioners is one of the primary goals for PT programs. Academic faculty partnering with neurologic residency programs to design learning environments that capitalize upon the strengths of both can create insightful educational experiences for students during their didactic training. These partnerships support the development of critical thinking skills and provide mentorship for residents transitioning from their role as a clinician to that of an educator. Using the SOLO (structure of observed learning outcomes) taxonomy as a framework for developing learning experiences, Seton Hall University neurologic academic faculty and program directors from the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation Residency in Neurologic Physical Therapy have built a partnership that seeks to develop critical reflection skills in both the neurologic resident and entry-level PT students. While integration of residents into entry-level PT curriculum may not be novel, we believe that utilizing the SOLO model within this partnership is unique. This paper describes the partnership and learning experiences rooted in the SOLO taxonomy theoretical framework and discusses perceived benefits of this learning experience across professional health science programs.