Formación en seguridad del paciente para el personal administrativo de una Mutua Colaboradora con la Seguridad Social, impacto inmediato y a los seis meses / Training in patient safety for the administrative staff of a Mutual Collaborator with Social Security, immediate impact and after six months

Introducción: El personal administrativo es un colectivo esencial. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar el impacto formativo de un curso online básico sobre seguridad del paciente para administrativos. Método: Estudio cuasi experimental antes/después en una población de 170 administrativos/as que prestaban sus servicios en los centros de la Mutua Colaboradora con la Seguridad Social MC Mutual y que realizaron un curso de seguridad del paciente. Se evaluaron los conocimientos adquiridos mediante una prueba al inicio (P1) y al final del curso (P2). Además, se eligió una muestra de conveniencia de 42 administrativos/as para evaluar sus conocimientos mediante entrevista, previos (E1) y posteriores (E2) al curso, y a los 6 meses (E3).Resultados: De los 170 administrativos/as participantes en el curso, 167 (98,2%) completaron la prueba al inicio y final, con puntuaciones medias que incrementaron de 5,7 (P1) a 7,3 (P2) (p<0,05). Aceptaron participar en las entrevistas 22 administrativos/as de una muestra de 42 (52,4%), y se consiguieron las tres entrevistas de 21 (E1), 22 (E2) y 19 (E3) administrativos/as, cuyas puntuaciones medias incrementaron desde 5,9 (E1) a 7,2 (E2) y 7,5 (E3) (p<0,05). Conclusiones: Los resultados sugieren que el curso de formación fue efectivo. La evaluación mediante la entrevista a los seis meses del curso indica un probable efecto a medio-largo plazo. La implicación de los/as profesionales administrativos/as en la atención a los usuarios de la Mutua es clave. La evaluación del impacto de una intervención es esencial para informar sobre su efectividad y orientar su planificación.(AU)

Introduction: Clerical staff are an essential part of the healthcare team, as they provide administrative and organizational support to healthcare institutions. The aim of this study is to determine the impact of a basic one-hour online training course on patient safety for these staff.Method: A quasi-experimental pre/post study carried out in a population of 170 administra-tive staff working in the centers of an Occupational Mutual Insurance Company (MC Mutu-al) who completed the patient safety training. A convenience sample of 22 administrative professionals, who agreed to participate, was chosen from this population, which made it possible to test their knowledge before and after the course, by examination (P1, P2) and interview, immediately after the course and at 6 months (E1, E2, E3).Results: Of the 170 professionals participating in the course, 167 (98.2%) completed the initial test and the post-test, with mean scores increasing from 5.7 (P1) to 7.3 (P2) (p<0.05). A total of 22 out of a sample of 42 (52.4%) agreed to participate in the interviews and all three interviews were completed by 21 (E1), 22 (E2) and 19 (E3) professionals, whose mean scores increased from 5.9 (E1) to 7.2 (E2) and 7.5 (E3) (p<0.05) Conclusions: The results suggest that the training course was effective. The evaluation by interview 6 months after the course indicates a likely medium to long term effect. The involvement of administrative professionals in the company ́s patient care is key. Evaluating the impact of an intervention is essential to inform its effectiveness and guide its plannin.(AU)

Media briefing on COVID-19 - 21/08/2020

Development of a Dementia Education Workshop for Prison Staff, Prisoners, and Health and Social Care Professionals to Enable Them to Support Prisoners With Dementia.

The world's prison population is aging. Older prisoners, those aged 50 years and older, are at risk of poor health and developing a dementia. Prisoners with dementia may present challenges to the regime within the prison and require extra support. However, prison staff and health and social care professionals have reported a lack of skills and knowledge to identify and support prisoners with dementia. This may be due to a lack of dementia education programs developed specifically for the prison setting and delivered comprehensively for all who work with prisoners. The aim of this article is to describe the development and implementation of a dementia education workshop for the prison setting that is suitable for all prison staff, prisoners, and health and social care professionals.

Examining the Impact of Knowledge Mobilization Strategies to Inform Urban Stakeholders on Accessibility: A Mixed-Methods study.

Urban areas offer many opportunities for people with disabilities, but limited accessibility may prevent their full engagement in society. It has been recommended that the experience-based perspective of people with disabilities should be an integral part of the discussion on urban accessibility, complementing other stakeholder expertise to facilitate the design of more inclusive environments. The goals of this mixed-method study were to develop knowledge mobilization (KM) strategies to share experience-based findings on accessibility and evaluate their impact for various urban stakeholders. Using a participatory approach, various KM strategies were developed including videos, a photo exhibit and an interactive game. These strategies were evaluated based on various impact indicators such as reach, usefulness, partnerships and practice changes, using quantitative and qualitative methods. The findings suggested that the KM strategies were effective in raising the awareness of various urban stakeholders and providing information and guidance to urban planning practices related to accessibility.

From achievement to power: David C. McClelland, McBer & Company, and the business of the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), 1962-1985.

During the 1960s, Harvard psychologist David McClelland focused his research and business endeavors on increasing the need for achievement in small businesspeople, with the goal of fostering economic success in the developing world. However, by the early 1970s, McClelland would focus almost entirely on developing executives' need for power in the United States. In this paper, I argue that underlying this shift was McClelland's dedication to the project of behavioral engineering and a newfound belief that training individuals in the responsible exercise of leadership and managerial power had become the most effective path to achieving his liberal political aims.

Providing Graduate Medical Education Orientation to Program Coordinators: A National Survey and Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The role of a program coordinator (PC) in graduate medical education (GME) has become increasingly important. OBJECTIVE: We surveyed PCs nationwide to identify the predictors of better performance outcomes. METHODS: A 58-question survey focusing on metrics that could be used to measure administrative performance was submitted electronically to 1515 PCs. Preplanned analysis was conducted to determine the association between receipt of training and PC performance metrics. RESULTS: A total of 712 (47%) PCs responded to the survey completely. Most (59%, 422 of 712) were from university programs. Respondents reported having received only GME training (17%, 121 of 712), only peer training (15%, 106 of 712), or both (9%, 67 of 712). Of those who reported, 51% (366 of 712) with GME training and 99% (708 of 712) with peer training found that training was helpful. The PCs who received both GME and peer training reported better performance, including lower rates of delayed starts and graduations, higher rates of compliance in cases and work hour reporting, and higher levels of readiness for internal reviews, GME visits, and the Match. The PCs who received only peer training reported better performance than did those with only GME training. Self-reported factors associated with improved PC performance were having prior administrative experience (ß = 0.201, P = .010) and being a PC for a longer time (ß = 0.188, P = .027). CONCLUSIONS: Having only GME training did not seem sufficient for an optimal PC performance. A combination of peer and GME orientation yielded the best administrative outcomes.

Bridging the research-policy divide: Pathways to engagement and skill development.

Researchers generally engage in few interactions with policymakers, which limits the extent to which empirical evidence is used to guide public policy and, consequently, the potential effectiveness of public policies in improving societal wellbeing. Although many researchers wish to see their work used for social impact, several factors contribute to researchers' limited policy engagement, including a lack of opportunities for developing policy competencies (i.e., knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy that support effective policy engagement) and limited support or incentives from research, training, and philanthropic institutions. Moreover, despite work that shows that researchers are more likely to engage in policy when they report greater policy competencies, little descriptive or evaluative research has explored the effectiveness of policy training. The current work seeks to expand the limited empirical base by drawing connections between training approaches and conditions that support policymakers' use of research evidence. Policy training approaches that combine direct instruction (i.e., information-based, often didactic teaching via classes) and experiential learning (i.e., skills and knowledge obtained through active engagement, hands-on application) appear most promising. Various pathways for policy training are described, and one specific policy training and engagement strategy is further described alongside evaluation data regarding benefits associated with direct instruction and experiential learning approaches. We conclude with recommendations to strengthen researchers' policy competency development and engagement. These recommendations range from increasing access to training opportunities to adjusting institutional incentive systems that currently hinder researchers' policy engagement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Pilot implementation of a monitoring and enforcement system for the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes in Cambodia.

Globally, monitoring and enforcement mechanisms for the World Health Organization's International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes are often lacking. The Cambodian government adopted the Code as the national standard in Sub-Decree 133 on Marketing of Products for Infant and Young Child Feeding. Following the formation of a multisectoral Oversight Board and development of detailed guidance documents for the implementation and enforcement of Sub-Decree 133, a 7-month pilot was conducted in 2017 to trial a monitoring system in four urban areas of Cambodia. The pilot included training of monitors from the Ministries of Health and Commerce, screening for violations at retail locations and health facilities, testing reporting mechanisms, and taking actions against violators. During the pilot, 85 national- and subnational-level monitors were trained, 392 site visits were made, 2,377 monitoring checklists were completed, and 11 warning letters were issued to violators. Half of the completed checklists (52.9%) indicated Code violations, yet monitors submitted zero violation reports. The pilot revealed modifications needed to the monitoring system: integrate monitor trainings into existing ministry training curricula for sustainability; enhance targeting of monitors for Sub-Decree training; delineate clear roles and responsibilities for the national and subnational levels; simplify monitoring checklists and violation reports; and improve integration of monitoring activities into routine ministry operations. Before the Sub-Decree 133 monitoring and enforcement system is implemented throughout Cambodia, revisions must be made to ensure the viability of this system. Challenges and lessons learned can also guide Code monitoring efforts being undertaken by other countries.

Determinants of Managerial Preventive Actions in Relation to Common Mental Disorders at Work: A Cross-Sectional Study Among Swedish Managers.

OBJECTIVE: Manager characteristics (personal, work-, and competence-related) were investigated as determinants of managerial preventive actions (MPAs) in relation to common mental disorders (CMDs) among employees. METHODS: A web survey (n = 2921) among Swedish managers measured diverse managerial characteristics and two types of MPAs: reviewing assignments and work situation (MPA-review); talking about CMDs at the work place (MPA-talk). RESULTS: MPA-review was reported by 50% and MPA-talk by 57% of managers. Characteristics that related to more MPAs were female gender, workplace offering lectures on CMDs, workplace offering stress counseling, being responsible for the work environment, management training on CMDs, and more than 10 years of managerial experience (MPA-talk only). CONCLUSION: Managers who are female, have had training on CMDs, and work for organizations paying attention to CMD prevention initiate MPAs more often.

On the Very, Very Frontlines of Mental Health Care.

The role and training needs of client-facing administrative staff in mental health settings is an underidentified topic in the literature. Although interactions between the medical office staff and clients are not typically defined as therapeutic, patients nevertheless often view client-facing staff as an extension of their physician or care team. These interactions can be both meaningful and important to the overall care experience and should be conceptualized and understood as a legitimate part of the larger healing environment. To this end, the authors propose that a more fulsome understanding is needed of the experiences and impact of administrative staff's role in the larger clinical encounter from the perspectives of both clients and staff. The authors also identify a number of unmet training and support needs for client-facing administrative staff.

Development and evaluation of online menopause awareness training for line managers in UK organizations.

OBJECTIVES: To develop and evaluate a 30-min online training for managers, in order to improve menopause-related knowledge, attitudes and confidence in having supportive discussions with women experiencing menopausal symptoms at work. The study also explored intentions and behaviour in terms of having conversations. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective, pre-post design involved collecting data at three time points: pre-training, immediately after training, and four weeks post-training. Three UK organizations (one public, two private sector) participated. On-line questionnaires collected sociodemographic and background data. Qualitative and quantitative evaluation data were collected in post-intervention questionnaires. Paired t-tests and McNemar tests examined statistical differences pre- and post-training; thematic content analysis was performed on qualitative data. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Menopause knowledge, attitudes and confidence in talking about the menopause at work, intentions, and actual behaviour. RESULTS: 270 staff were invited and 98 consented to participate; 62 and 61 provided data immediately and 4 weeks post training, respectively. Compared to pre-training scores, statistically significant improvements were found in menopause-related knowledge, attitude (not viewing the menopause as an embarrassing topic to talk about at work), confidence in talking about the menopause with staff, and intentions to discuss menopause, at both follow-up assessments. Over 90% of respondents reported that they found the training useful and would recommend it to others. CONCLUSIONS: A brief menopause awareness training may be a feasible and effective way to help managers become more knowledgeable about menopause-related problems and more confident in discussing and exploring solutions with their staff.

Are our 'UHC systems' learning systems? Piloting an assessment tool and process in six African countries.

BACKGROUND: If there is one universal recommendation to countries wanting to make progress towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC), it is to develop the learning capacities that will enable them to 'find their own way' - this is especially true for countries struggling with fragmented health financing systems. This paper explores results from a multi-country study whose main aim was to assess the extent to which UHC systems and processes at country level operate as 'learning systems'. METHOD: This study is part of a multi-year action-research project implemented by two communities of practice active in Africa. For this specific investigation, we adapted the concept of the learning organisation to so-called 'UHC systems'. Our framework organises the assessment around 92 questions divided into blocks, sub-blocks and levels of learning, with a seven scale score in a standardised questionnaire developed during a protocol and methodology workshop attended by all the research teams. The study was implemented in six francophone African countries by national research teams involving researchers and cadres of the ministries involved in the UHC policy. Across the six countries, the questionnaire was administrated to 239 UHC actors. Data were analysed per country, per blocks and sub-blocks, by levels of learning and per question. RESULTS: The study confirms the feasibility and relevance of adapting the learning organisation framework to UHC systems. All countries scored between 4 and 5 for all the sub-blocks of the learning system. The study and the validation workshops organised in the six countries indicate that the tool is particularly powerful to assess weaknesses within a specific country. However, some remarkable patterns also emerge from the cross-country analysis. Our respondents recognise the leadership developed at governmental level for UHC, but they also report some major weaknesses in the UHC system, especially the absence of a learning agenda and the limited use of data. CONCLUSION: Countries will not progress towards UHC without strong learning systems. Our tool has allowed us to document the situation in six countries, create some awareness at country level and initiate a participatory action-oriented process.