Continuing Professional Development via Social Media or Conference Attendance: A Cost Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Professional development is essential in the health disciplines. Knowing the cost and value of educational approaches informs decisions and choices about learning and teaching practices. OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of this study was to conduct a cost analysis of participation in continuing professional development via social media compared with live conference attendance. METHODS: Clinicians interested in musculoskeletal care were invited to participate in the study activities. Quantitative data were obtained from an anonymous electronic questionnaire. RESULTS: Of the 272 individuals invited to contribute data to this study, 150 clinicians predominantly from Australia, United States, United Kingdom, India, and Malaysia completed the outcome measures. Half of the respondents (78/150, 52.0%) believed that they would learn more with the live conference format. The median perceived participation costs for the live conference format was Aus $1596 (interquartile range, IQR 172.50-2852.00). The perceived cost of participation for equivalent content delivered via social media was Aus $15 (IQR 0.00-58.50). The majority of the clinicians (114/146, 78.1%, missing data n=4) indicated that they would pay for a subscription-based service, delivered by social media, to the median value of Aus $59.50. CONCLUSIONS: Social media platforms are evolving into an acceptable and financially sustainable medium for the continued professional development of health professionals. When factoring in the reduced costs of participation and the reduced loss of employable hours from the perspective of the health service, professional development via social media has unique strengths that challenge the traditional live conference delivery format.

Translating evidence to practice in the health professions: a randomized trial of Twitter vs Facebook.

Objective: Our objective was to compare the change in research informed knowledge of health professionals and their intended practice following exposure to research information delivered by either Twitter or Facebook. Methods: This open label comparative design study randomized health professional clinicians to receive "practice points" on tendinopathy management via Twitter or Facebook. Evaluated outcomes included knowledge change and self-reported changes to clinical practice. Results: Four hundred and ninety-four participants were randomized to 1 of 2 groups and 317 responders analyzed. Both groups demonstrated improvements in knowledge and reported changes to clinical practice. There was no statistical difference between groups for the outcomes of knowledge change (P = .728), changes to clinical practice (P = .11) or the increased use of research information (P = .89). Practice points were shared more by the Twitter group (P < .001); attrition was lower in the Facebook group (P < .001). Conclusion: Research information delivered by either Twitter or Facebook can improve clinician knowledge and promote behavior change. No differences in these outcomes were observed between the Twitter and Facebook groups. Brief social media posts are as effective as longer posts for improving knowledge and promoting behavior change. Twitter may be more useful in publicizing information and Facebook for encouraging course completion.

Translating Evidence Into Practice via Social Media: A Mixed-Methods Study.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 80% of research evidence relevant to clinical practice never reaches the clinicians delivering patient care. A key barrier for the translation of evidence into practice is the limited time and skills clinicians have to find and appraise emerging evidence. Social media may provide a bridge between health researchers and health service providers. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of social media as an educational medium to effectively translate emerging research evidence into clinical practice. METHODS: The study used a mixed-methods approach. Evidence-based practice points were delivered via social media platforms. The primary outcomes of attitude, knowledge, and behavior change were assessed using a preintervention/postintervention evaluation, with qualitative data gathered to contextualize the findings. RESULTS: Data were obtained from 317 clinicians from multiple health disciplines, predominantly from the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States, India, and Malaysia. The participants reported an overall improvement in attitudes toward social media for professional development (P<.001). The knowledge evaluation demonstrated a significant increase in knowledge after the training (P<.001). The majority of respondents (136/194, 70.1%) indicated that the education they had received via social media had changed the way they practice, or intended to practice. Similarly, a large proportion of respondents (135/193, 69.9%) indicated that the education they had received via social media had increased their use of research evidence within their clinical practice. CONCLUSIONS: Social media may be an effective educational medium for improving knowledge of health professionals, fostering their use of research evidence, and changing their clinical behaviors by translating new research evidence into clinical practice.

Medical journal covers--an analysis of gendered images and how these might influence best practice.

BACKGROUND: Images convey a concept or message to their audience. In medical communications, social expectations and stereotypes can be transferred through language, images and practices just as they can in the lay press. Most medical journals utilise images on their front covers, with the aim of enticing readers to open the journal. OBJECTIVE: This article explores the use of image on the covers of two medical journals. It investigates the concepts of gender and the patient-doctor relationship used in these images through a content analysis. DISCUSSION: While the images investigated are engaging and sometimes amusing, we explore meanings beyond our engagement as a viewer. The discussion focuses on the need for promotion of best practice, in words and pictures, to model best professional practice.

Better knowledge, better health: piloting an education intervention in chronic condition self-management support.

Chronic condition self-management and lifestyle risk modification education is paramount for General Practice registrars. A multi-dimensional learning package 'Better Knowledge, Better Health' was developed and piloted to improve General Practice registrars' understanding of their role in supporting chronic condition self-management in patients with osteoarthritis. This pilot study was supported by the Australian Better Health Initiative. Pre-training learning needs analysis with a new intake of General Practice registrars (n=40) indicated high levels of confidence in supporting patients in chronic condition management and lifestyle risk modification, and locating and interacting with local resources and allied health professionals. Conversely, interviews with General Practice Supervisors (n=13) found most would not identify chronic condition self-management skills as priorities for registrar learning. Supervisors were also not familiar with core principles of chronic condition self-management, in particular application of motivational interviewing to behaviour change. Disparities between General Practice Supervisors' perceptions of the importance of chronic condition self-management and lifestyle risk modification education and levels of access to learning opportunities in chronic condition self-management for registrars are discussed. Difficulties in implementing a pilot study within tight timeframes are also explored.

Transgenerational learning: maximising resources, minimising teaching gaps and fostering progressive learning.

The need to rationalise teaching resources underpinned a project at Monash University that used a Delphi technique to re-examine the teaching curriculum of two key topic areas in the medical curriculum - ophthalmology and dermatology - from an undergraduate, graduate and vocational perspective. Using Bloom's taxonomy the learning objectives from these topic areas were collated and analysed. This process allowed the revising and redistributing of learning objectives of the curricula to reduce the likelihood of duplication of teaching or more importantly gaps in teaching occurring. This process highlighted the potential utility of using a transgenerational approach to curriculum planning but the outcomes are limited due to the small number of participating educators and the lack of formal evaluation of the method.

Bridging the gap in ageing: Translating policies into practice in Malaysian Primary Care.

Population ageing is poised to become a major challenge to the health system as Malaysia progresses to becoming a developed nation by 2020. This article aims to review the various ageing policy frameworks available globally; compare aged care policies and health services in Malaysia with Australia; and discuss various issues and challenges in translating these policies into practice in the Malaysian primary care system. Fundamental solutions identified to bridge the gap include restructuring of the health care system, development of comprehensive benefit packages for older people under the national health financing scheme, training of the primary care workforce, effective use of electronic medical records and clinical guidelines; and empowering older people and their caregivers with knowledge, skills and positive attitudes to ageing and self care. Ultimately, family medicine specialists must become the agents for change to lead multidisciplinary teams and work with various agencies to ensure that better coordination, continuity and quality of care are eventually delivered to older patients across time and settings.

Linking the RACGP curriculum to vocational education.

Regional training providers face many challenges in delivering vocational training to general practice registrars across Australia. They need to be able to respond to new learning theories and the ever expanding volume of medical knowledge, as well as the changing medical workforce. In 2008, the Victorian Metropolitan Alliance (VMA) embarked on a project to map the new Royal Australian College of General Practitioners curriculum to the VMA program. The aim of this article is to describe the processes through which the VMA created a curriculum guide for peer learning workshops, supervisors and registrars, designed to be adaptable to various Australian curricula and to be flexible and robust, as well as accessible to the intended users.