Reflexivity and expansive learning theory in interprofessional workplace learning.

Our aim in this article was to combine the theories of reflexivity and expansive learning theory to elucidate how they may interact in interprofessional health student teams' learning activities in the workplace. According to Margaret Archer reflexivity is "the regular exercise of the mental ability, shared by all normal people, to consider themselves in relation to their (social) context and vice versa." It stems from the individual's inner dialogue. In interprofessional student teams, the participants' inner dialogs may interplay, forming team reflexivity. We have elucidated how individual reflexivity and team reflexivity are related in the workplace. Expansive learning theory focuses on the learning possibilities in the zone of proximal development. Working through contradictions, the team may develop the object, which may be something drastically new. We regard team reflexivity as a driving force for elucidating and differentiating complex contradictions, stimulating the development of the object. Our study may inspire educators to further develop the pedagogical design of their interprofessional courses. We describe how team reflexivity may be facilitated in the student team activity, among the health-care staff, and in the administrative collaboration between educational institutions and governmental health services.

Evidence of validity for the Norwegian version of the interprofessional collaborative competency attainment survey (ICCAS).

This was a validation study of the Norwegian version of The Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Survey (ICCAS). ICCAS consists of 20 retrospective pre- and post-questions, where respondents rate their agreement with regard to self-assessed competencies after participating in interprofessional education courses. It has been validated across various settings. The questionnaire was translated using the back-translation technique. We investigated evidence of validity regarding content, response process, and internal structure. Data were obtained from health and social care students (n = 1440, response rate 42.8%) participating in 12 different interprofessional courses in seven education institutions in Norway using a cross-sectional design. Exploratory factor analysis indicated one retracted factor for pre-scores and one retracted factor for post-scores. High McDonald's omega values indicated good internal consistency. Item deletion did not improve the scale's overall consistency on pre- or post-scores. We observed higher mean post-scores than pre-scores with moderate-to-large effect sizes, indicating a positive change in self-assessed interprofessional capabilities after training. Our findings indicate that the Norwegian version of ICCAS is a valid tool that may be implemented across a wide range of interprofessional education courses. Finally, our findings support earlier recommendations that ICCAS should be analyzed at an overall level to address change in interprofessional capabilities.

Have medical students' attitudes towards clinical communication skills changed over a 12- year period? A comparative long-term study.

BACKGROUND: Attitudes towards learning clinical communication skills at the end of medical school are likely to reflect the students' training and motivation for the continued development of their skills as doctors. Students from two Norwegian medical schools, one with a traditional, and the other with an integrated curriculum, were approached in 2003 and 2015; with regard to changes in students' attitudes towards acquiring communication skills in two diverse learning environments. This comparison might reveal the effects of the training programs from a long-term perspective, as neither of the medical schools made any major curriculum changes within the study period. METHODS: The samples comprised final-year medical students. Two separate cross-sectional surveys performed 12 years apart (2003 and 2015) used items from the Communication Skills Attitude Scale in addition to age and gender. The traditional curriculum included only theoretical teaching and no contact with patients was made during the first 2 to 2.5 years of medical school. However, the integrated curriculum combined training in theoretical and clinical communication skills with early patient contact from the beginning. RESULTS: Attitudes improved from the first to the second survey at both schools, however, students from the integrated school reported more positive attitudes than those from the traditional school. Female students from the integrated school contributed the most to the difference in attitudes in both surveys. CONCLUSIONS: Students in both traditional and integrated curricula improved their attitudes from the first to the second assessment. However, compared with the traditional curriculum, the integrated one fostered even higher levels of positive attitudes towards acquiring communication skills, and a pronounced influence was observed on female students. These findings suggest that an educational program with greater emphasis on improving attitudes among male students may be required.

Pedagogical aspects of interprofessional workplace learning: a case study.

In this article we aim to elucidate some pedagogical aspects of interprofessional workplace learning, using the learning strategies of the Centre for Interprofessional Workplace Learning, Norway (TVEPS) as a case. We find the Expansive Learning Theory well suited for a creative interaction with the learning strategies at our interprofessional training centre. The Expansive Learning Theory focuses on learning over a substantial time horizon, but also opens for micro-cycles of learning over a shorter time of hours or days, which mirrors the learning system of TVEPS. As the social premises for learning are both situated and in change, human learning as a social process is diverse and in continuous change. Expansive Learning Theory focuses the interprofessional team learning at the workplace rather than on individual learning. Thereby such team learning is regarded as situated at the workplace premises physically, interpersonally, administratively and social-historically. The interprofessional student team's learning process creates an object, a construct within the physical, ethical, social, administrative, or theoretical domain. In the TVEPS learning system, the object is the patient care plan which the student team produces, by working on resolving contradictions in the zone of proximal development. By debriefing the object (the care plan) with the staff, the object is developed further in creative interplay. New objects may be developed, as changed care or change in administrative systems at the workplace. By linking these concepts, Expansive Learning Theory can function as an analytical tool for understanding interprofessional learning activity at the workplace.

Ibuprofen versus pivmecillinam for uncomplicated urinary tract infection in women-A double-blind, randomized non-inferiority trial.

BACKGROUND: Although uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs) are often self-limiting, most patients will be prescribed antibiotic treatment. We assessed whether treatment with ibuprofen was non-inferior to pivmecillinam in achieving symptomatic resolution by day 4, with a non-inferiority margin of 10%. METHODS AND FINDINGS: This was a randomized, controlled, double-blind non-inferiority trial. We recruited patients from 16 sites in a general practice setting in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Non-pregnant women aged 18-60 years presenting with symptoms of uncomplicated UTI were screened for eligibility from 11 April 2013 to 22 April 2016. Patients with informed consent were randomized (1:1 ratio) to treatment with either 600 mg ibuprofen or 200 mg pivmecillinam 3 times a day for 3 days. The patient, treating physician, and study personnel were blinded to treatment allocation. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who felt cured by day 4, as assessed from a patient diary. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of patients in need of secondary treatment with antibiotics and cases of pyelonephritis. A total of 383 women were randomly assigned to treatment with either ibuprofen (n = 194, 181 analyzed) or pivmecillinam (n = 189, 178 analyzed). By day 4, 38.7% of the patients in the ibuprofen group felt cured versus 73.6% in the pivmecillinam group. The adjusted risk difference with 90% confidence interval was 35% (27% to 43%) in favor of pivmecillinam, which crossed the prespecified non-inferiority margin. Secondary endpoints were generally in favor of pivmecillinam. After 4 weeks' follow-up, 53% of patients in the ibuprofen group recovered without antibiotic treatment. Seven cases of pyelonephritis occurred, all in the ibuprofen group, giving a number needed to harm of 26 (95% CI 13 to 103). Five of these patients were hospitalized and classified as having serious adverse events; 2 recovered as outpatients. A limitation of the study was the extensive list of exclusion criteria, eliminating almost half of the patients screened. We did not register symptoms in the screening process; hence, we do not know the symptom burden for those who declined to participate. This might make our results less generalizable. CONCLUSIONS: Ibuprofen was inferior to pivmecillinam for treating uncomplicated UTIs. More than half of the women in the ibuprofen group recovered without antibiotics. However, pyelonephritis occurred in 7 out of 181 women using ibuprofen. Until we can identify those women who will develop complications, we cannot recommend ibuprofen alone as initial treatment to women with uncomplicated UTIs. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01849926 EU Clinical Trials Register (EU-CTR), EudraCT Number 2012-002776-14.

Patients' attitudes toward copayments as a steering tool-results from a qualitative study in Norway and Germany.

Background: Copayments are implemented in many health care systems. The effect of copayments differs between countries. Up to now, patients' attitudes regarding copayments are mainly unknown. Objectives: Thus, the goal of our analysis was to explore adult patients' attitudes in Germany and Norway towards copayments as a steering tool. Methods: We conducted a qualitative comparative study. Episodic interviews were conducted with 40 patients in Germany and Norway. The interviews were analysed by thematic coding in the framework of grounded theory. All text segments related to copayments were analysed in depth for emerging topics and types. Results: We found three dimensions of patients' attitudes towards copayments: the perceived steering effect, the comprehensibility, and the assessment of copayments. The perceived steering effect consists of three types: having been influenced by copayments, not having experienced any influence and the experience of other persons to be influenced. The category comprehensibility describes that not all patients understand rules and regulations of copayments and its caps. The assessment of copayments consists of nine subcategories, three of which are rather negative and six of which are rather positive. In all three dimensions the patterns between the German and Norwegian sub-samples differ considerably. Conclusions: The results of our study point at the importance of communicating clear rules for copayments which are easily comprehensible.

Predicting outcome in frozen shoulder (shoulder capsulitis) in presence of comorbidity as measured with subjective health complaints and neuroticism.

BACKGROUND: There is a substantive lack of knowledge about comorbidity in patients with frozen shoulder. The aim of this study was to investigate whether subjective health complaints and Neuroticism would predict treatment outcome in patients diagnosed with frozen shoulder as measured by the Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) and change in SPADI. METHODS: A total of 105 patients with frozen shoulder were recruited for a randomised controlled trial, where 69 were in the intervention group and received intraarticular corticosteroid injections and 36 patients served as control group. The SPADI was used as the outcome measure after 8 weeks, and change in SPADI from baseline to 8 weeks as a measure of rate of recovery. To examine comorbidities, all participants completed the Subjective Health Complaints (SHC) questionnaire with its five subscales, and the Neuroticism (N) component of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised. Multiple regression analysis was performed with the baseline comorbidity variables that correlated significantly with SPADI after 8 weeks, and with change in SPADI from baseline to 8 weeks, controlling for the variables intervention, age, gender and duration of pain. RESULTS: In this study, patients with frozen shoulder had little comorbidity as measured with SHC and scored normally with respect to Neuroticism. Only the Pseudoneurology subscale in SHC correlated significantly with SPADI and had significant predictive power (p < 0.001) for the outcome at 8 weeks. The intervention group exhibited significant statistical predictive power (p < 0.001) for the treatment outcome as measured by a change in SPADI from baseline to 8 weeks. Being female also had some predictive significance for change in SPADI (p < 0.005). CONCLUSION: Psychometric parameters as measured by the Pseudoneurology subscale in SHC questionnaire did predict the treatment outcome in frozen shoulder as measured by SPADI at 8 weeks, but not by change in SPADI from baseline to 8 weeks. One may conclude that psychometric parameters may affect symptoms, but do not predict the rate of recovery in frozen shoulder. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT01570985 .

Do medical students and young physicians assess reliably their self-efficacy regarding communication skills? A prospective study from end of medical school until end of internship.

BACKGROUND: This prospective study from end of medical school through internship investigates the course and possible change of self- reported self-efficacy in communication skills compared with observers' ratings of such skills in consultations with simulated patients. METHODS: Sixty-two medical students (43 females) from four Norwegian universities performed a videotaped consultation with a simulated patient immediately before medical school graduation (T1) and after internship (internal medicine, surgery and family medicine, half a year each - T2). Before each consultation, the participants assessed their general self-efficacy in communication skills. Trained observers scored the videos and applied a well-validated instrument to rate the communication behaviour. Results from the two assessment methods were correlated at both time points and possible differences from T1 to T2 were explored. RESULTS: A close to zero correlation between self-efficacy and observed communication skills were found at T1. At T2, participants' self-efficacy scores were inversely correlated with levels of observed skills, demonstrating a lack of concordance between young physicians' own assessment of self-efficacy and observers' assessment. When dividing the sample in three groups based on the observers' scores (low <1/3-, medium 1/3 to 2/3-, high competence >2/3), the group of male physicians showed higher levels of self-efficacy than females in all the three performance groups at T1. At T2, those having a high performance score yielded a low self-efficacy, regardless of gender. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of positive correlations between self-efficacy assessment and expert ratings points to limitations in the applicability of self-assessment measures of communication skills. Due to gender differences, groups of female and male physicians should be investigated separately. Those obtaining high-performance ratings from observers, through the period of internship, may become more conscious of how demanding clinical communication with patients may be. This insight may represent a potential for growth, but could in some physicians represent too much of a self-critical attitude. Active supervision of young physicians throughout internship is important in order to help physicians to be more aware of their strengths and weaknesses, in order to gain increased mastery in the art of doctoring.

Typologies in GPs' referral practice.

BACKGROUND: GPs' individual decisions to refer and the various ways of working when they refer are important determinants of secondary care use. The objective of this study was to explore and describe potential characteristics of GPs' referral practice by investigating their opinions about referring and their self-reported experiences of what they do when they refer. METHODS: Observational cross-sectional study using data from 128 Norwegian GPs who filled in a questionnaire with statements on how they regarded the referral process, and who were invited to collect data when they actually referred to hospital during one month. Only elective referrals were recorded. The 57 participants (44,5 %) recorded data from 691 referrals. The variables were included in a principal component analysis. A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to identify typologies with GP's age, gender, specialty in family medicine and location as independent variables. RESULTS: Eight principal components describe the different ways GPs think and work when they refer. Two typologies summarize these components: confidence characterizing specialists in family medicine, mainly female, who reported a more patient-centred practice making priority decisions when they refer, who confer easily with hospital consultants and who complete the referrals during the consultation; uncertainty characterizing young, mainly male non-specialists in family medicine, experiencing patients' pressure to be referred, heavy workload, having reluctance to cooperate with the patient and reporting sparse contact with hospital colleagues. CONCLUSIONS: Training specialists in family medicine in patient-centred method, easy conference with hospital consultant and cooperation with patients while making the referral may foster both self-reflections on own competences and increased levels of confidence.

Adhesive capsulitis of the shoulder, treatment with corticosteroid, corticosteroid with distension or treatment-as-usual; a randomised controlled trial in primary care.

BACKGROUND: Optimal management for adhesive shoulder capsulitis (frozen shoulder) is currently unclear. We intended to explore whether treatment by intra-articular injections with corticosteroid and distension is more effective than treating with corticosteroids alone or treatment-as-usual in a primary care setting in Norway. METHODS: In this prospective randomised intention to treat parallel study, 106 patients were block randomised to three groups; 36 (analysed 35) receiving steroid injection and Lidocaine (IS), 34 receiving steroid and additional saline as distension (ISD) and 36 had treatment-as-usual (TAU). Intervention groups received four injections within 8 weeks, assessed on 1st visit, at the 4th and 8th week. Outcomes were Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI), Numerical pain rating scale (NPRS) and passive range of motion (PROM). Postal assessment was repeated after 1 year for SPADI. Patients in the IS and ISD groups were "blinded" for intervention received and the assessor was "blinded" to group allocation. RESULTS: At baseline there were no differences between groups in outcome measures. There were no statistical significant differences between the intervention groups in SPADI, NPRS and PROM at baseline, at short-term (4-and 8 weeks) or long-term (12 months). There were statistically significant differences (p < 0.01) in change scores at short-term for SPADI when comparing the IS and TAU groups (-20.8; CI-28.9 to -12.7), and the ISD and TAU groups (-21.7; CI-29.4 to -14.0), respectively for NPRS (-2.0; CI-2.8 to -1.1 and -2.2; CI-3.0 to -1.4), and for PROM, but not at long-term for SPADI (p > 0.05). Effect size (ES) at 8 weeks was large between both injection groups and TAU (ES 1.2). At 12 months ES was reduced to 0.3 and 0.4 respectively. Transitory side effects as flushing and after-pain were reported by 14 % in intervention groups. CONCLUSION: This intention to treat RCT in primary care indicates that four injections with corticosteroid with or without distension, given with increasing intervals during 8 weeks, were better than treatment-as-usual in treatment of adhesive shoulder capsulitis. However, in the long run no difference was found between any of the groups, indicating that natural healing takes place independent of treatment or not. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ identifier: NCT01570985.

Passive range of motion in patients with adhesive shoulder capsulitis, an intertester reliability study over eight weeks.

BACKGROUND: Measuring range of motion (ROM) in the shoulder joint is important for the diagnosis and monitoring of change over time. To what degree passive ROM can be trusted as a reliable outcome measure was examined as part of an on-going randomized controlled trial for patients with shoulder capsulitis. The aim of this study was to examine intertester reliability of passive ROM in the shoulder joint over a period of eight weeks in patients with adhesive capsulitis stage II. METHODS: Fifty patients with a clinical diagnosis of adhesive shoulder capsulitis were examined by two independent testers. A predefined protocol was used for measuring passive range of motion with an inclinometer, a plurimeter, in both affected and non-affected shoulders three times; at the start of the study and after 4 and 8 weeks. RESULTS: Very good to excellent intertester agreements were found for most parameters for the affected arm at all three test points. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 2.1) values ranged from 0.76 to 0.98, i.e. from very reliable to excellent. The measurement error was in general small for the affected arm (5°-7°). ICCs were slightly lower for the non-affected arm at 8 weeks, but with acceptable measurement errors. CONCLUSIONS: Intertester reliability between two testers was very good at three visits over a time period of eight weeks using a plurimeter to measure passive range of motion in patients with adhesive shoulder capsulitis. This method can reliably determine passive range of motion in this patient population and be a reliable outcome measure.

Ibuprofen versus mecillinam for uncomplicated cystitis--a randomized controlled trial study protocol.

BACKGROUND: Although uncomplicated cystitis is often self-limiting, most such patients will be prescribed antibiotic treatment. We are investigating whether treatment of cystitis with an NSAID is as effective as an antibiotic in achieving symptomatic resolution. METHODS/DESIGN: This is a randomized, controlled, double blind trial following the principles of Good Clinical Practice. Women between the ages of 18 to 60 presenting with symptoms of uncomplicated cystitis are screened for eligibility. 500 women from four sites in Norway, Sweden and Denmark are allocated to treatment with 600 mg ibuprofen three times a day or 200 mg mecillinam three times a day for three days. Allocation is conducted using block randomization. The primary outcome is the number of patients who feel cured by day four as recorded in a diary. Adverse events will be handled and reported in accordance with Good Clinical Practice. DISCUSSION: If treatment of uncomplicated cystitis with ibuprofen is as effective as mecillinam for symptom relief, we can potentially reduce the use of antibiotics on a global scale. TRIAL REGISTRATION: EudraCTnr: 2012-002776-14. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01849926.

The consultants' role in the referring process with general practitioners: partners or adjudicators? a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Within the health system, communication between the different levels of care is essential for the patients' clinical pathways and medical treatment. This includes the referral process: how and why patients are sent from the primary care level to specialist health services. We wanted to identify and describe hospital consultants' reflections on and attitudes to the referral process and cooperation with general practitioners (GPs). METHODS: A qualitative study of semi-structured interviews with 13 hospital consultants representing eight different specialties, analyzed using systematic text condensation. Interviews conducted from February 2011 to October 2012. RESULTS: The consultants reported a considerable workload assessing referrals from GPs and prioritizing patients for specialist services. National guidelines were used as well as individual standards and guidelines. Good referrals could make the prioritization process easier. The specialists expressed a deep concern about securing a fair priority of patients and a willingness to give reasonable advice back to the referring GP when rejecting a referral. Better communication, such as a telephone call to confer with a hospital specialist before referral, was wanted. CONCLUSIONS: Better communication and cooperation between hospital consultants and GPs could make the referral process more balanced, and the participants more like partners.

A few more minutes make a difference? The relationship between content and length of GP consultations.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between the length of a medical consultation in a general practice setting and the biopsychosocial information obtained by the physician, and to explore the characteristics of young physicians obtaining comprehensive, especially psychosocial information. DESIGN: A prospective, longitudinal follow-up study. SETTING: Videotaped consultations with standardized patients on two occasions were scored for the amount of biopsychosocial information obtained. Consultation length was recorded in minutes. Subjects. Final-year (T-1) medical school students (n = 111) participated in the project. On completion of their internship one and a half years later (T-2), 62 attended a second time, as young physicians. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Content lists. RESULTS: Pearson's r correlations between content and length at T-1 and T-2 were 0.27 and 0.66, respectively (non-overlapping confidence intervals). Psychosocial content increased significantly when consultations exceeded 13 minutes (15 minutes scheduled). Physicians using more than 13 minutes had previously, as hospital interns, perceived more stress in the emergency room and had worked in local hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: A strong association was found between consultation length and information, especially psychosocial information, obtained by the physicians at internship completion. This finding should be considered by faculty members and organizers of the internship period. Further research is needed to detect when, during the educational process, increased emphasis on communication skills training would be most beneficial for students/residents, and how the medical curriculum and internship period should be designed to optimize young physicians' use of time in consultations.

General practitioners' reflections on referring: an asymmetric or non-dialogical process?

OBJECTIVE: Identify and describe general practitioners' (GPs') reflections on and attitudes to the referral process and cooperation with hospital specialists. DESIGN: Qualitative study using semi-structured focus-group interviews with GPs analysed using Giorgi's method as modified by Malterud. SETTING: Interviews conducted over four months from November 2010 to February 2011. SUBJECTS: 17 female and 14 male GPs aged 29 to 61 years from 21 different practices, who had practised for 3-35 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Description of GPs' views on the referral process. RESULTS: GPs wished for improved dialogue with the hospital specialists. The referral process was often considered as asymmetric and sometimes humiliating. GPs saw the benefit of using templates in the referral process, but were sceptical concerning the use of mandatory fixed formats. CONCLUSIONS: The referral process is essential for good patient care between general practice and specialist services. GPs consider referring as asymmetric and sometimes humiliating. The dichotomy between the wish for mutual dialogue and the convenience of using templates should be kept in mind when assuring quality of the referral process.

Career choice and place of graduation among physicians in Norway.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate to what extent a physician's place of graduation is associated with the physician choosing a career as a general practitioner (GP), and identify factors in the curriculum that could predict a general practice career. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study based on the membership database of the Norwegian Medical Association. SETTING: Physicians working in Norway who graduated from four domestic medical schools, five other countries, and three groups of countries. Physicians were categorized according to their main professional activity as GPs, hospital physicians, and researchers. SUBJECTS: A total of 2836 medical physicians who were working in Norway during 2010 and graduated from medical school between 2002 and 2005. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Percentage and odds ratio for subjects working as a GP in Norway during 2010. Descriptive data for pre-graduate general practice education in Norwegian medical schools were also analysed. RESULTS: Compared with the University of Oslo, there was a significantly higher proportion of GPs among physicians who had graduated from Denmark (OR 2.9, 95% CI 1.9-4.5), Poland (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.4-2.9), Sweden (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.0-3.1), and Trondheim (Norway) (OR 1.5, 95% CI 1.1-2.0). Across the four Norwegian medical schools, there were significant associations between choosing a general practice career and the sum of pre-graduate educational hours regarding general practice, general practice preceptorship, and the number of GP teachers. CONCLUSION: The physician's place of graduation appears to be associated with career choice. The universities' total contribution in pre-graduate general practice education may be associated with future GP career choice.