Journal of Allied Health最新文献

This study was performed to determine how cognitive and affective empathy changes as doctor of physical therapy (DPT) students go through training. Cognitive empathy was measured using the Jefferson Scale of Empathy, and affective empathy was measured using the Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale. Each survey instrument was given at the start and end of each of the 3 academic years. The cohorts consisted of first-, second-, and third-year DPT students. Cognitive empathy scores had a non-significant increase for each cohort, but the steady rise in cognitive empathy scores for each cohort suggested the students are becoming more comfortable communicating with patients to form an empathic bond of trust. Affective empathy scores significantly increased only for first-year students and indicate the students are more aware of their initial vicarious reaction to patients. Affective empathy scores stabilized for cohorts two and three with no significant changes. There needs to be an awareness about the possibility of future burnout associated with some students having too much affective empathy. DPT students with affective empathy scores ≥ 2.0 SD above the population norm need to be taught to partially blunt their affective response to not let their own internal emotional state decrease their ability to effectively treat the patient.

Objective: To determine the trends in the settings and types of providers that provide oral health services to pediatric patients using Medicaid in Arizona.

Methods: In a retrospective descriptive study, we examined the place of service and provider type of Medicaid-paid dental claims among pediatric patients from January 2016 to December 2019. We analyzed Medicaid reimbursed dental services using dental claims data.

Results: More Arizona children aged birth to 21 were treated in health clinics than in private practice/dental support organization settings in 2019 than in 2016. Preventive and minor restorative dental claims were significantly higher in 2019 than in 2016 for pediatric patients in Arizona. Further, there was an increase in dental claims paid to non-dentists, such as dental hygienists and nurse practitioners, in 2019 compared to 2016.

Conclusions: The place of service and provider type are shifting among pediatric Medicaid patients in Arizona. Not only is there a shift from place of service, but preventive and minor restorative dental claims are being filed by more non-dental providers. This reveals the movement towards integrated oral health in primary care for pediatric Medicaid patients in Arizona.

Purpose: The study aimed to explore the effect of a pain neuroscience education (PNE) course on provider burnout, attitudes and beliefs about pain and confidence in treating patients with pain.

Subjects: 209 healthcare professionals taking a PNE course.

Methods: The healthcare providers were surveyed using the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, Pain Attitudes and Beliefs Scale, and the Pain Care Confidence Scale before attending a PNE course and then at 1-week and 6-months post training.

Results: A small effect (Cohen's d = 0.180, p = 0.024) was found for females at 1-week post-training for the burnout exhaustion score; no other significant effects were found related to burnout. Pain Attitudes and Beliefs Biomedical and Biopsychosocial subscales had significant changes at 1-week (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005) and at 6-months (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005), respectively, moving toward a more biopsychological approach for care. Pain confidence scores significantly improved at both time periods (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001).

Conclusion: A significant finding was that the pain education course positively changed the healthcare providers' pain attitudes and beliefs along with confidence in pain care, but with minimal to no change in burnout scores.

Graduate students in nursing and occupational therapy programs are required by accrediting agencies to receive education in healthcare policy and to engage in advocacy. This study assesses the impact of policy classes on students' political astuteness at the end of their programs of study. The study used a longitudinal, follow-up design to determine changes in political astuteness from beginning to completion of graduate programs or coursework. Students enrolled in the nursing and OT graduate programs at a mid-sized southeastern university completed a modified Political Astuteness Inventory (PAI) at the start and end of their program of study. Seventy-eight students participated in the study at the beginning of their program and 47 participated following the end of their program. The mean of all student scores on the Political Astuteness Inventory (PAI) showed a significant increase at the completion of their programs. Providing dedicated policy instruction has potential to increase political astuteness among graduate health science students. The political astuteness of those directly involved in health care is key to shaping effective, equitable healthcare policy.

The murder of George Floyd by police was a defining moment in American history. Following national social justice movements, Rutgers School of Health Professions (SHP) joined the conversation about the need for change towards more purposeful diversity, inclusivity, and social justice. Through a call to action, SHP established an equity task force (SET) charged with expanding understanding of the role of the healthcare provider in promoting health equity within the school. Three subcommittees were formed to focus on each goal. The work of the SET Research and Scholarship subcommittee is the focus of this commentary. Using a scoping review method, committee members used an evidence-based approach to assesses levels of intentional diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in faculty scholarship. Findings of low levels of intentional DEI in the published scholarly works was viewed as an opportunity to foster and encourage some level of DEI in scholarship across the health disciplines. Strategies such as raising awareness about opportunities for intentional DEI-focused research were shared with SHP faculty. Continued assessment for increased levels of DEI inclusion in our faculty scholarly works is needed to measure the impact of these strategic efforts.

Despite a long-standing appreciation for the importance of effective communication to facilitate health behavior change, many allied health professionals, including registered dietitians, receive only introductory training in advanced approaches, such as motivational interviewing (MI). This study evaluated the implementation and preliminary effects of a dietetics course that integrated intensive, competency-based MI training. Enrolled graduate dietetics students (n = 18) consented to participate in this pilot single-arm trial with pre-post data collection (i.e., survey and completion of real-play counseling sessions evaluated using the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code [MITI]). Baseline MITI scores indicate participants were mostly unable to provide MI, though improvements were seen at post-course. Significant improvements were seen in MITI scores, MI knowledge, and MI-related confidence (all P<0.01).

Millions of Americans are designated as medically underserved, lacking adequate access to healthcare. Physical therapy (PT) is a healthcare discipline that can improve mobility and decrease secondary health conditions but is often inaccessible to medically underserved populations. In this qualitative study, persons living in urban or rural medically underserved locations in Alabama were interviewed to explore their awareness and perceptions of PT as well as barriers to access. Thirty-three in-person interviews were completed at the rural locality and 19 at the urban locality. The majority of interview subjects were female (81.8%) and most identified as Black/African American (81.8%). Three themes emerged: 1) a positive perception but incomplete awareness of the scope of PT services, 2) shared barriers to PT access across rural and urban settings, and 3) barriers unique to each locality. These findings were specific to PT but are likely relevant to a variety of allied health disciplines to improve healthcare access in medically underserved populations.

Minoritized individuals are underrepresented in the allied health professions, several of which require a graduate degree to become a certified practitioner. The purpose of this study was to identify the factors related to persistence into graduate school for minoritized undergraduate students within a college of allied health in a predominantly white institution in the southeastern United States. Via focus groups, 11 juniors and seniors were interviewed about their experiences and perspectives related to pursuing graduate-level education. Using a phenomenological approach, student responses were coded for themes and subthemes. Results indicated that personal determination and establishing meaningful relationships with faculty and peers were key to school success and the potential for transition into graduate school. Barriers included inconsistencies in meaningful relationships such as being perceived as invisible or being a part of an institution with a limited culture of inclusion. Students also reported personal barriers such as limited financial resources, lack of family support, and difficulty asking for help as obstructing the path to graduate school. We emphasize the importance of faculty-student relationships, and in particular, mentorship, both informal and formal, for increasing the likelihood of success for minoritized individuals pursuing healthcare fields.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to determine the sleep evaluation and interventions content taught in entry-level OT and PT education programs.

Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted to determine sleep instructional practices. All accredited entry-level MOT, OTD, and DPT programs in the United States (n = 471) were invited to participate.

Results: Ninety-three respondents completed the online survey for a 20% response rate. 91% reported informal sleep evaluation content, 42% reported formal sleep evaluation content, and 73% reported formal sleep interventions content is included in their curricula. The most selected reason for not teaching formal sleep evaluations was lack of faculty knowledge on the subject. The most selected number of hours spent teaching formal sleep evaluation and formal sleep intervention was 1 to 2 hours. A variety of sleep evaluations and interventions were being taught.

Conclusion: Most respondents reported teaching informal and formal sleep interventions, while less than half taught evaluation using standardized sleep instruments. While some instructional variability in sleep evaluation and sleep interventions is reasonable, the variability may indicate a need for standardized curricular guidelines for entry-level OT and PT programs on sleep evaluation and intervention content.

Sleep is critical for health, well-being, and recovery after injury or illness. Recognizing sleep disorders as part of physical therapists' (PT) roles is gaining traction. This secondary analysis compared PTs' education, perceptions, and attitudes regarding sleep in the United States, Jordan, and Brazil. Means and standard deviations (SD) were calculated for continuous variables; frequency distributions for categorical data. Fisher's exact tests assessed group differences at a <0.05, with post-hoc analyses using Bonferroni correction at a <0.017. Participants included 76 U.S. PTs (83% female, age 41.99 ± 10.94), 87 Jordanian PTs (57% female; age 28.13 ± 4.44), and 164 Brazilian PTs (82% female; age 36.03 ± 7.93). Over 90% agreed on the importance of sleep and that PTs should inquire about sleep issues. However, most lacked sleep education in PT school (64-79%) or after graduation (65-93%). Only 26-56% routinely assessed sleep, 21-43% educated patients on its importance, and 18-59% provided guidance on improving sleep quality. Differences existed in attitudes, education, and practices regarding sleep across countries. Despite recognizing sleep's importance, PTs lack the necessary education to address it adequately. Equipping PTs globally to address sleep issues is a critical opportunity to enhance sleep health and mitigate health consequences of poor sleep worldwide.