Mixed Methods for Research on Support Networks of People Experiencing Chronic Illness and Social Marginalization.

Substantial research has focused on how social networks help individuals navigate the illness experience. Sociologists have begun to theorize beyond the binary of strong and weak social network ties (e.g., compartmental, elastic, and disposable ties), citing the social, economic, and health conditions that shape their formation. However, limited research has employed mixed social network methods, which we argue is especially critical for examining the "non-traditional" social support networks of marginalized individuals. We employ quantitative social network methods (i.e., the egocentric network approach) in addition to in-depth interviews and observations, with a novel tool for capturing network data about social groups, to surface these kinds of supportive relationships. Using the case of "nameless ties"-non-kin, non-provider ties who were unidentifiable by given name or were grouped by context or activity rather than individually distinguished-we show how mixed social network methods can illuminate supporters who are commonly overlooked when only using traditional social network analysis. We conclude with a proposal for mixed methods and group alter approaches to successfully observe liminal support ties that is ideal for research about individuals experiencing chronic disability, poverty, housing insecurity, and other forms of social marginalization.

Excellence in Postlicensure Interprofessional Palliative Care Education: Consensus Through a Delphi Survey.

An increasing number of palliative care educational programs strive to meet the workforce need for palliative care clinicians. This growth necessitates development of robust quality standards. The purpose of this Delphi consensus process was to describe high-quality postlicensure interprofessional palliative care education programs. The steering committee, composed of 6 faculty with experience implementing interprofessional palliative care educational programs, developed initial characteristics, definitions, and subcategories, which were refined through a series of 3 iterative Delphi surveys and a public presentation at a national palliative care meeting. More than 50 palliative care clinicians and educators representing multiple professions were invited to participate in the Delphi surveys; 20 completed round 1, 23 completed round 2, and 15 participants completed round 3. The final consensus included 6 characteristics with definitions, and both required and recommended subcategories for each characteristic. Identified characteristics include competencies, content, educational strategies, interprofessional focus, evaluation, and systems integration. This initial description of quality for postlicensure interprofessional palliative care education programs may be used by learners to guide program selection, new or existing program faculty for course development or quality improvement, or professional organizations to evaluate program quality in a program certification or quality award initiative.

Current State of International Clinical Experiences in US Prelicensure Nursing Programs.

AIM: The study purpose was to describe current international clinical experience (ICE) practices in RN prelicensure programs in the United States. BACKGROUND: There is interest in ICE to fulfill the goal of preparing global citizens; however, lack of evidence on developing, implementing, and evaluating best practices for ICE limits the enactment of this approach. METHOD: An electronic survey was completed by 900 deans and/or directors of diploma, associate, bachelor's, accelerated bachelor's, and master's-entry RN prelicensure programs. RESULTS: Respondents (n = 241, 27 percent) indicated their programs included ICE. Across programs, ICE occurred most often in community health courses. The predominant reason for offering ICE was alignment with the institutional mission and vision. CONCLUSION: Wide variability exists in methods used to implement ICE for credit toward the nursing major. There is a need to continue to assess and disseminate best practices in implementing ICE to accomplish the goal of global health engagement.