Scholarly activities among clinical laboratory science faculty.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the research and scholarly productivity of faculty in four-year college and university clinical laboratory science (CLS) programs. To identify meaningful scholarship, to assign values to that scholarship, and to list the top 15 CLS programs according to faculty research productivity. DESIGN: In 1996, a national study involving 127 college and university CLS programs was conducted to determine whether faculty were participating in research. A questionnaire was distributed to 505 faculty members. Data from 286 respondents (57% response) representing 114 of 127 (90%) CLS programs were analyzed. SETTING: The study took place at The Ohio State University with collaboration from the University of Tennessee-Memphis and the University of Minnesota. PARTICIPANTS: All CLS faculty within a four-year university or college sponsoring a CLS program were invited to participate. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: To determine whether CLS faculty scholarly activities have been strengthened in the last decade, to quantitate scholarship productivity by point assessment, and to list the top 15 CLS programs according to faculty research productivity. RESULTS: Research productivity included time spent in research, numbers of publications and presentations, and grantsmanship. Data indicate that faculty who possess earned doctorates and are employed by research universities have higher levels of research productivity. While 46% of the CLS faculty hold doctorates and 50% are tenured, 42% of all CLS faculty members have not published a research paper or abstract since 1990. Conversely, faculty in some non-research institutions may not be expected to participate in such scholarly activities. On the other hand, 23% of the faculty responding had published six or more articles or abstracts since 1990, 46% were successful in obtaining external funding, and 15% of faculty members had been awarded grants larger than $100,000. CONCLUSIONS: The top 10% of clinical laboratory science faculty researchers are performing approximately one-half of all scholarly activities. The top fifteen research programs in CLS are identified, and not surprisingly, are located in research universities. In the past decade, and generally speaking, CLS faculty have made progress in scholarship including highest degree obtained, publications, presentations, and grantsmanship.

Scholarship and research of allied health deans and directors.

In 1997, a questionnaire was sent to 141 allied health deans or directors to: 1) determine current research and scholarship, 2) ascertain institutional expectations regarding scholarly activities, 3) characterize the institution's research environment, 4) quantitate scholarship productivity by point assessment, and 5) compare scholarship of administrators from research universities with that of those at non-research four-year colleges and universities. Seventy-three (52%) responded. Measures of research productivity included time spent in research, numbers of publications and presentations, and grantsmanship. While spending two thirds of their time in administrative duties, many deans and directors were actively involved in scholarship. Since 1990, they had, as a group, produced 855 publications, made 1,348 presentations, and been awarded $38.3 million in total funding. They did not differ significantly by employing institution (a research institution or a non-research institution).

Research productivity and activities of clinical laboratory science faculty: a follow-up study.

A national study was conducted in 1996 to compare clinical laboratory science faculty demographics, scholarly activities, and perceptions of the research environment with corresponding data reported in 1988. Faculty have made progress in earning doctorates (46%), achieving higher ranks (49%), and getting tenured (50%). Relatively few faculty are conducting much of the research, with the greater majority serving as teachers. Research productivity, as evaluated via research publications and presentations, showed that in 1996, full professors and those with doctorates published the most articles and abstracts in refereed journals; they also made more presentations than junior faculty. Faculty in research universities were more productive than those in four-year colleges and universities. The faculty surveyed in 1985 and those surveyed in 1996 perceived their research skills and environments to be almost identical. In both 1985 and 1996, the importance of research for promotion and tenure decisions ranked highest as a characteristic of the environment. Financial resources and time available for research ranked lowest.

Health locus of control and self-efficacy beliefs in a healthy elderly sample.

BACKGROUND: The elderly are the fastest growing segment of the population, and this will place additional burdens on the healthcare system. It is therefore valuable to study the elderly who have reached their later years relatively free of disease and in good health. METHODS: Health locus of control, self-efficacy beliefs, and lifestyle behaviors were studied in a sample of 57 healthy elderly subjects. Subjects completed the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, Self-Efficacy Scale, and Healthstyle Self-Test for Seniors. RESULTS: Most of the subjects were characterized by an internal health locus of control belief (91.2%), high generalized self-efficacy (57.9%), and good health behaviors. As hypothesized, positive relationships were found among these variables. DISCUSSION: Individuals with an internal health locus of control and high generalized self-efficacy are more likely to benefit from a health education program than those with an external locus of control and low self-efficacy. Health educators can better serve their clients by evaluating these parameters when developing programs.

Current concepts in proteinuria.

Proteinuria, long recognized as a sign of renal disease, is a common laboratory abnormality in children and adults. Proteinuria may be transient or persistent; when persistent, the cause must be determined. Proteinuria may be primarily glomerular or tubular in origin. Glomerular proteinuria is usually an important concern. Tubular proteinuria often indicates the presence of tubulointerstitial or obstructive renal disease. Screening tests are available to detect albumin (the major protein in glomerular proteinuria), but there are no simple tests for immunoglobulin light chains and low-molecular-mass proteins, which predominate in overflow proteinuria and tubular proteinuria. These small proteins can only be detected by more sophisticated assays such as electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing, and chromatography. The association of glomerular and tubular types of proteinuria with specific disorders is reviewed in this paper, and current concepts in laboratory methodology for the study of proteinuria are summarized.

Assessing the need for multicompetent allied health care professionals in the HMO setting.

In the past decade, changes in health care reimbursement and emphasis on cost containment have changed patterns of health care delivery. Among these changes are the rapid decline of the hospital as the center of care, and an emphasis on managed systems of health care delivery. Health maintenance organizations (HMOs) have grown rapidly, and now control a significant portion of the health care marketplace. As such, HMOs provide nontraditional employment settings for allied health professionals. To date, little is known regarding the status of allied health professionals in the HMO setting. The purpose of this study was to describe the perceived need for nontraditional multicompetent allied health professionals in the HMO setting. Results indicate that group and staff model HMOs have a high number of traditionally prepared allied health professionals. In addition, a large number of these sites employ multicompetent professionals, most of whom receive "in-house" training. Further research regarding the role expectations for such professionals is indicated.

Research skills and the research environment: a needs assessment of allied health faculty.

Allied health faculty are expected to successfully compete with other academic faculty in the research arena, yet many feel unprepared for this role. Most faculty have been trained as clinicians and, thus, bring to academe few skills in research design and methodology. A national study was conducted to assess the research skills and the research milieu of allied health faculty across eleven disciplines. Data are presented from 2,187 survey responses. Unmet needs included skills in obtaining funding, statistical analysis of the data, and publishing research results. Major barriers to research included the undervaluing of research relative to education and service, the lack of financial and administrative support, the absence of professional resources, and the generally low priority given research. Faculty with earned doctorates perceived their research environments more favorably and had fewer gaps in research skills than did faculty with a bachelor's or master's degree.

Research productivity profile of allied health faculty.

Many allied health faculty are expected to obtain graduate degrees and engage in scholarly activity to advance knowledge in their professions and fulfill the research mission of their academic institution. A national study of ten allied health disciplines was conducted to assess the level of allied health research productivity and to determine the relationship between the amount of research and faculty characteristics. Research productivity included the number of major paper presentations and research publications, number of times served as project principle investigator, and the time devoted to research per week. Faculty characteristics were the type of employing institution, and the academic degree, rank, and tenure status of the faculty member. Data from 2,187 survey respondents indicated that faculty who are employed by four-year research universities, possess earned doctorates, hold the rank of professor, and are tenured had significantly higher levels of research productivity.