IntroductionThe Dutch Medical Doctor-Global Health (MD-GH) prepares to work in low-resource settings (LRS) by completing a hybrid postgraduate training program of 2 years and 9 months, with clinical and public health exposure in the Netherlands and a Global Health residency in LRS. The objectives of the program include acquiring clinical skills to work as a physician in a setting with different (often more severe) pathology and limited resources. In public health teaching, emphasis is given, among other, to adapting to a culturally different environment. After graduation, MD-GH work in a wide variety of countries and settings for variable time. As part of a curriculum review, this study examines MD-GHs' perception of the quality of the training program and provides recommendations for improvement.MethodsA qualitative study was performed. Thematic analysis was applied to semi-structured interviews with 23 MD-GH who graduated between 2017 and 2021.ResultsMD-GHs predominantly worked as clinicians; several were (also) involved in management or capacity building. The clinical training program adequately addressed general skills, but did not sufficiently prepare for locally encountered, often severe, pathology. During the training, adequate supervision with clear learning goals was found pivotal to a positive learning experience. Gaps included clinical training in Internal Medicine (particularly infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases) and Paediatrics. Public Health teaching as well as cultural awareness should be intensified and introduced earlier in the program. The Global Health residency was considered important, but tasks and learning outcomes varied. Teaching, supervision, and capacity building were considered increasingly important key elements of working in LRS. Consensus favoured the current duration of the training program without extension.DiscussionWhile the generalist nature of the MD-GH training was appreciated, the program would benefit from additional clinical training in infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases, and Paediatrics. Moving forward, emphasis should be placed on structured mentorship, enhanced public health teaching, and standardized residency programs with clearly delineated objectives to better equip MD-GH professionals for their multifaceted roles in LRS. Moreover, future revisions of the training program should incorporate the perspectives of host institutes in LRS and tailor the training needs.
MULTIFILE
BACKGROUND: To evaluate whether a training programme is a feasible approach to facilitate occupational health professionals' (OHPs) use of knowledge and skills provided by a guideline.METHODS: Feasibility was evaluated by researching three aspects: 'acceptability', 'implementation' and 'limited efficacy'. Statements on acceptability and implementation were rated by OHPs on 10-point visual analogue scales after following the training programme (T2). Answers were analysed using descriptive statistics. Barriers to and facilitators of implementation were explored through open-ended questions at T2, which were qualitatively analysed. Limited efficacy was evaluated by measuring the level of knowledge and skills at baseline (T0), after reading the guideline (T1) and directly after completing the training programme (T2). Increase in knowledge and skills was analysed using a non-paramatric Friedman test and post-hoc Wilcoxon signed rank tests (two-tailed).RESULTS: The 38 OHPs found the training programme acceptable, judging that it was relevant (M: 8, SD: 1), increased their capability (M: 7, SD: 1), adhered to their daily practice (M: 8, SD: 1) and enhanced their guidance and assessment of people with a chronic disease (M: 8, SD: 1). OHPs found that it was feasible to implement the programme on a larger scale (M: 7, SD: 1) but foresaw barriers such as 'time', 'money' and organizational constraints. The reported facilitators were primarily related to the added value of the knowledge and skills to the OHPs' guidance and assessment, and that the programme taught them to apply the evidence in practice. Regarding limited efficacy, a significant increase was seen in OHPs' knowledge and skills over time (X2 (2) = 53.656, p < 0.001), with the median score improving from 6.3 (T0), 8.3 (T1) and 12.3 (T2). Post-hoc tests indicated a significant improvement between T0 and T1 (p < 0.001) and between T1 and T2 (p < 0.001).CONCLUSIONS: The training programme was found to be a feasible approach to facilitate OHPs' use of knowledge and skills provided by the guideline, from the perspective of OHPs generally (acceptability and implementation) and with respect to their increase in knowledge and skills in particular (limited efficacy).
DOCUMENT
Observations upon research carried out by post-graduate students on the M.A Comparative European Social Studies. This article follows an earlier article (Lawrence and Reverda, Social Work in Europe, Vol. 5. No. 3, 1998) which discussed the origin and development of the MACESS course. This article explores the complexity of comparative research as a methodology for exploring social work as a contribution to developing European perspectives on Social Policy and Social Professional Work Theory and Practice.
DOCUMENT
Design educators and industry partners are critical knowledge managers and co-drivers of change, and design graduate and post-graduate students can act as catalysts for new ideas, energy, and perspectives. In this article, we will explore how design advances industry development through the lens of a longitudinal inquiry into activities carried out as part of a Dutch design faculty-industry collaboration. We analyze seventy-five (75) Master of Science (MSc) thesis outcomes and seven (7) Doctorate (PhD) thesis outcomes (five in progress) to identify ways that design activities have influenced advances in the Dutch aviation industry over time. Based on these findings, we then introduce an Industry Design Framework, which organizes the industry/design relationship as a three-layered system. This novel approach to engaging industry in design research and design education has immediate practical value and theoretical significance, both in the present and for future research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sheji.2019.07.003 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-de-lille-8039372/
MULTIFILE
The past decades have shown an accelerated development of technology-enhanced or digital education. Although an important and recognized precondition for study success, still little attention has been paid to examining how an affective learning climate can be fostered in online training programs. Besides gaining insight into the dynamics of affective learning itself it is of vital importance to know what predicts trainees’ intention to transfer new knowledge and skills to other contexts. The present study investigated the influence of five affective learner characteristics from the transfer literature (learner readiness, motivation to learn, expected positive outcomes, expected negative outcomes, personal capacity) on trainees’ pre-training transfer intention. Participants were 366 adult students enrolled in an online course in information literacy in a distance learning environment. As information literacy is a generic competence, applicable in various contexts, we developed a novel multicontextual transfer perspective and investigated within one single study the influence of the abovementioned variables on pre-training transfer intention for both the students’ Study and Work contexts. The hypothesized model has been tested using structural equation modeling. The results showed that motivation to learn, expected positive personal outcomes, and learner readiness were the strongest predictors. Results also indicated the benefits of gaining pre-training insight into the specific characteristics of multiple transfer contexts, especially when education in generic competences is involved. Instructional designers might enhance study success by taking affective transfer elements and multicontextuality into account when designing digital education.
MULTIFILE
From the article: "Various programs in higher education feel a need to teach project management skills to students. Measuring the effect of education is a challenge especially when focused on behavioral skills. Research on learning gains usually turns to the method of Students Assessment of Learning Gains (SALG), which can be questioned on reliability. This article constructs five design criteria for an improved Students Assessment of Learning Gains (SALG): measure satisfaction, use pre- and posttests, use perceived ability, account for learning stage one and account for attrition. A first test on a semester of a professional master in project management yields ambiguous results. The second test with a 360 degrees measurement is performed on the same semester with different students. The post test is scheduled for June 2014, results will be reported at the World Congress."
MULTIFILE
This paper is a case report of why and how CDIO became a shared framework for Community Service Engineering (CSE) education. CSE can be defined as the engineering of products, product-service combinations or services that fulfill well-being and health needs in the social domain, specifically for vulnerable groups in society. The vulnerable groups in society are growing, while fewer people work in health care. Finding technical, interdisciplinary solutions for their unmet needs is the territory of the Community Service Engineer. These unmet needs arise in local niche markets as well as in the global community, which makes it an interesting area for innovation and collaboration in an international setting. Therefore, five universities from Belgium, Portugal, the Netherlands, and Sweden decided to work together as hubs in local innovation networks to create international innovation power. The aim of the project is to develop education on undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate levels. The partners are not aiming at a joined degree or diploma, but offer a shared short track blended course (3EC), which each partner can supplement with their own courses or projects (up to 30EC). The blended curriculum in CSE is based on design thinking principles. Resources are shared and collaboration between students and staff is organized at different levels. CDIO was chosen as the common framework and the syllabus 2.0 was used as a blueprint for the CSE learning goals in each university. CSE projects are characterized by an interdisciplinary, human centered approach leading to inter-faculty collaboration. At the university of Porto, EUR-ACE was already used as the engineering education framework, so a translation table was used to facilitate common development. Even though Thomas More and KU Leuven are no CDIO partner, their choice for design thinking as the leading method in the post-Masters pilot course insured a good fit with the CDIO syllabus. At this point University West is applying for CDIO and they are yet to discover what the adaptation means for their programs and their emerging CSE initiatives. CDIO proved to fit well to in the authentic open innovation network context in which engineering students actively do CSE projects. CDIO became the common language and means to continuously improve the quality of the CSE curriculum.
DOCUMENT
In the Netherlands, palliative care is provided by generalist healthcare professionals (HCPs) if possible and by palliative care specialists if necessary. However, it still needs to be clarifed what specialist expertise entails, what specialized care consists of, and which training or work experience is needed to become a palliative care special‑ist. In addition to generalists and specialists, ‘experts’ in palliative care are recognized within the nursing and medical professions, but it is unclear how these three roles relate. This study aims to explore how HCPs working in palliative care describe themselves in terms of generalist, specialist, and expert and how this self-description is related to their work experience and education. Methods A cross-sectional open online survey with both pre-structured and open-ended questions among HCPs who provide palliative care. Analyses were done using descriptive statistics and by deductive thematic coding of open-ended questions. Results Eight hundred ffty-four HCPs flled out the survey; 74% received additional training, and 79% had more than fve years of working experience in palliative care. Based on working experience, 17% describe themselves as a generalist, 34% as a specialist, and 44% as an expert. Almost three out of four HCPs attributed their level of expertise on both their education and their working experience. Self-described specialists/experts had more working experience in palliative care, often had additional training, attended to more patients with palliative care needs, and were more often physicians as compared to generalists. A deductive analysis of the open questions revealed the similarities and dis‑ tinctions between the roles of a specialist and an expert. Seventy-six percent of the respondents mentioned the impor‑tance of having both specialists and experts and wished more clarity about what defnes a specialist or an expert, how to become one, and when you need them. In practice, both roles were used interchangeably. Competencies for the specialist/expert role consist of consulting, leadership, and understanding the importance of collaboration. Conclusions Although the grounds on which HCPs describe themselves as generalist, specialist, or experts difer, HCPs who describe themselves as specialists or experts mostly do so based on both their post-graduate education and their work experience. HCPs fnd it important to have specialists and experts in palliative care in addition to gen‑eralists and indicate more clarity about (the requirements for) these three roles is needed.
DOCUMENT
The development of intercultural competences has become a prominent goal for many study programs in higher education. A widely used frame to measure intercultural competence is Cultural Intelligence (CQ). While empirical research has focused extensively on the development of CQ by means of (student) mobility and long-term training, the effects of short-format trainings – a more cost-effective intervention that can be provided to a large number of participants – remain understudied. Existing findings are inconclusive, and it remains unclear under which conditions, and for whom, short-format interventions are effective in improving participants’ CQ. We propose that CQ development is contingent upon individual differences in multicultural personality traits (operationalized through the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire, MPQ). More specifically, in this study we investigate (1) whether a short-format (6-hour) training improves CQ among higher education students (n = 108), and (2) whether the development of CQ is moderated by students’ social-perceptual and stress-related MPQ trait scores prior to the training. Using a pre and post-test design we found that across the whole sample, all four facets of the CQ increased after the training. We also found that some social-perceptual traits of the MPQ moderated the development of CQ: Social initiative on Metacognitive CQ, Openmindedness on Cognitive CQ, and Social initiative and Openmindedness on Motivational CQ. Additionally, we did not find a moderator effect of stress-related MPQ traits on the development of Behavioral CQ. Based on our findings, we conclude that multicultural personality influences individuals’ susceptibility to intercultural education, underscoring the importance of individualized approaches in intercultural education.
DOCUMENT
Purpose: To evaluate the effects of a combination of wheelchair mobility skills (WMS) training and exercise training on physical activity (PA), WMS, confidence in wheelchair mobility, and physical fitness. Methods: Youth using a manual wheelchair (n = 60) participated in this practice-based intervention, with a waiting list period (16 weeks), exercise training (8 weeks), WMS training (8 weeks), and follow-up (16 weeks). Repeated measures included: PA (Activ8), WMS (Utrecht Pediatric Wheelchair Mobility Skills Test), confidence in wheelchair mobility (Wheelchair Mobility Confidence Scale), and physical fitness (cardiorespiratory fitness, (an)aerobic performance) and were analysed per outcome parameter using a multilevel model analyses. Differences between the waiting list and training period were determined with an unpaired sample t-test. Results: Multilevel model analysis showed significant positive effects for PA (p = 0.01), WMS (p < 0.001), confidence in wheelchair mobility (p < 0.001), aerobic (p < 0.001), and anaerobic performance (p < 0.001). Unpaired sample t-tests underscored these effects for PA (p < 0.01) and WMS (p < 0.001). There were no effects on cardiorespiratory fitness. The order of training (exercise before WMS) had a significant effect on confidence in wheelchair mobility. Conclusions: A combination of exercise and WMS training appears to have significant positive long-term effects on PA, WMS, confidence in wheelchair mobility, and (an)aerobic performance in youth using a manual wheelchair.Implications for rehabilitationExercise training and wheelchair mobility skills (WMS) training can lead to a sustained improvement in physical activity (PA) in youth using a manual wheelchair.These combined trainings can also lead to a sustained increase in WMS, confidence in wheelchair mobility, and (an)aerobic performance.More attention is needed in clinical practice and in research towards improving PA in youth using a manual wheelchair.
DOCUMENT
