Models of Care
An Innovative Leadership Model for Healthcare Teams: Multi-case Study Findings
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Janice Hoffman Simen
Healthcare teams possess the clinical and medical capabilities to meet the challenges of geriatric patient care. Teams in healthcare are used frequently, however, function only as well as the leadership facilitating the process. Built on a foundation of communication, interpersonal engagement, and decision making, the proposed leadership model is designed to improve team leadership in healthcare. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perception of the applicability of the Simen-Schreiber integrated leadership model for healthcare teams from the viewpoint of the healthcare team within four different healthcare practice settings. Four facilities from different healthcare practice settings selected a team to participate in multiple methods comprised within this qualitative study including a team observation tool, the TEI-QUE-ASF-modified emotional intelligence questionnaire, ten-question focus group and a face to face meeting with the administrator to obtain background information. The four settings investigated were the pilot site, a Diabetes-focused ambulatory care clinic, an acute care geriatric-psychiatric unit, a skilled nursing facility, and a university clinic for geriatric patients. The triangulation of the data describes support for the Simen-Schreiber leadership model. Examination of results from the four teams across different practice settings shows support of the Simen-Schreiber leadership model for healthcare teams. Higher functioning teams demonstrated higher emotional intelligence scores, and observational findings agreed. The findings of this study show the Simen-Schreiber leadership model is applicable to geriatric healthcare teams and may be useful in preparing healthcare professionals for participation in teamwork leading to more efficient and effective patient-centered care.
Facilitating a Good Death: Evaluation of US Undergraduate Palliative Care Nursing Education Curriculum
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Janet Banks, Briana Rotter, Casey Shillam
The American Academy of Colleges of Nurses (AACN) has identified gaps in palliative and end-of-life nursing care education at the baccalaureate level. To overcome this gap, AACN in partnership with the End-of-Life-Nursing-Education-Consortium (ELNEC) developed online learning modules on this important topic. This curriculum is available to all baccalaureate nursing programs in the United States. The purpose of our research study is to evaluate the implementation of the ELNEC curriculum within the University of Portland, School of Nursing. Objectives for the study include: a) evaluation of nursing student knowledge in palliative and end-of-life care, b) measuring perceived competency among baccalaureate nursing students over time, and c) identify knowledge differences, if any, between traditional four year nursing students and transfer nursing students. Objectives will be accomplished through a simple pre-test/post-test design utilizing an anonymous Qualtrics survey incorporating a validated palliative care education assessment tool. The survey will be distributed from Aug 2018- Jan 2019, with data collection and evaluation of results occurring in Spring and Summer 2019. Results will inform a framework for curriculum design and evaluation. The ultimate goal of the research is to equip nursing students with the knowledge and tools needed to provide palliative care that honors patient's goals and facilitates quality of life.
Undergraduate Social Work Students’ Knowledge of and Attitudes Towards Older Persons: Implications for Professional Training
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Stephan Geyer
Social work is one of the professions concerned with the welfare of older persons. After a review of various research databases, it was confirmed that in contrast to the developed world, there is a dearth of research amongst social work scholars in Africa and the global south, such as South Africa, regarding undergraduate social work students’ knowledge of and attitudes towards older persons. Hence, it was the goal of this study to determine and describe undergraduate social work students’ knowledge of and attitudes towards older persons. A cross-sectional survey was undertaken to determine the profile of respondents, students’ contact with older persons, their knowledge of old age (i.e., Palmore’s First Facts of Aging Quiz in multiple-choice format, 1996), and attitudes towards older persons (i.e., Fraboni’s Scale of Ageism, 1990). Through convenience sampling, 395 B Social Work students registered at two South African universities participated in the study. Seven dependent variables were compared with a number of independent variables, i.e., age, sex, year level of study, the area of childhood residence, the presence of an older person in the family, courses in gerontology, and consideration of working exclusively with older persons, in order to determine their mutual impact. Based on a Pearson correlation coefficient test as well as independent t-tests and ANOVAs, this study offers recommendations for initial and continuous professional training of social workers to prepare a cadre of gerontological social workers. South Africa, as a young, global south democracy, serves as a point in case.
