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Chapter 8: �Education and Research

Prepared by:

APIC DFW Professional Advancement Committee

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Chapter 8�Pre-Study Session Quiz��

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1. Learning retention increases when:

Testing covers appropriate material
Learners are rewarded for attending classes
Application immediately follows instruction
Food is provided during training

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2. Educators should develop a well-defined plan for each learning experience that includes:

Goals
Objectives
Appropriate teaching methods
All of the above

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3. Which of the following are present in well-written research methods sections except:

Time period of the study
Clear criteria for defining cases & controls
Questions the research will answer
Methods of quality assurance

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4. Which section of research studies contains the assessment of internal validity & the influence of bias?�

Introduction
Results
Discussion
Methods

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Affiliated Resources for Study�(11 questions)

APIC Text Chapters 3, 5, 19, 20

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Education Concepts

Assessing needs, developing measurable goals when preparing educational programs
Preparing, presenting or coordinating educational content that is appropriate for audience
Providing immediate feedback , education &/or training when lapses in practice are observed
Evaluating the effectiveness of education & learner outcomes (observations of practice, process measures)
Facilitating effective education of patients, families & others regarding IP&C measures
Implementing strategies that engage patients, families & others in activities aimed at preventing infections

All education falls under two categories:

A person’s capacity to process and retain new information
A person’s ability to convey known information in a way that facilitates easier absorption by another.

Educational needs and goals are going to be different between disciplines
Knowing whether your audience has foundational knowledge is key in preparation. I wouldn’t speak to you all the same way I speak to a nurse or respiratory tech; and I wouldn’t speak to a patient or family member the same way I would to a HCW
Feedback is a good thing, your personal growth needs it. You should also be willing to provide it. You should also work to make yourself comfortable in 1-on-1 inservices as well as group lectures.
One of the greatest measures of effectiveness is the return demonstration.
You can learn all the science involved in Infection Prevention, but if you cannot communicate its importance, you cannot succeed.

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Characteristics of the Adult Learner

Autonomous & self-directed
Have foundations of life experiences/knowledge & are goal-directed by nature
Are relevancy-oriented & practical in HC settings
Need to be shown respect
However, YOUNG adults in the workplace may need to be approached differently from an educational perspective, recognizing differences in technological abilities & how they view their job responsibilities

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Bloom’s Taxonomy

Established framework for adult education
Developed to promote higher forms of thinking in education, such as analyzing & evaluating—rather than memorization
Established goals of the learning process
This framework may be found in chapter 3, table 1; recommend at least being familiar with it

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Three Domains of Learning

Cognitive: mental skills/knowledge
Affective: growth in feelings/emotional self (attitude or self)
Psychomotor: manual or physical skills

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Active Learning

Role-playing
Quizzes/games
Brainstorming
Group problem-solving
Simulation
Case studies (great in IP&C)

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Program Content

Based on needs assessment or performance improvement studies which identify deficiency in knowledge, skills or attitude
Program content must be relevant, practical & “doable”, including practice sessions; plan for reinforcement in the practice setting

The program needs to be built with intent. In real-life scenarios learning for the sake of knowledge is not efficient. Building a program needs to be geared towards providing a specific service. Sometimes this can be a general overview, sometimes it can be a specific process or pathogen. It can be towards a specific group (nurse, respiratory therapist, facilities, environmental services), or a more public announcement. Each may require a different approach.

The motivation behind the content is important as well. Is the reason for education due to trending data, or is it proactive from published studies?

Collecting and organizing the information is only the first part. You need to be able to effectively convey it as well. When preparing ask yourself: Why should they care? Is this useful to their workflow? Can it be readily applied?

To help improve reception, providing a practical portion that allows the audience to apply the lesson would help immensely.

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Competency Measurement

Proposed IP competencies may be found on pg. 9 of chapter 3—recommend reviewing!
Be familiar with general principles regarding competency measurement

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Goals and Objectives

Should describe learner outcomes in measurable terms & use ACTION verbs, such as discuss, describe, demonstrate, compare or evaluate
Developed to reflect level of complexity

3 lowest levels: knowledge, comprehension & application
3 highest levels: analysis, synthesis & evaluation

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Learning Environment

Atmosphere of mutual respect, friendly, informal & supportive
Environment that is:

comfortable & conducive to learning
private & congenial with careful consideration of seating (to maximize learning transactions & maximize physical & sensory potential)
room temp
lighting

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Program Evaluation

Formative evaluation: conducted during the planning of the educational session to provide immediate feedback and allow changes to be made
Summative evaluation: occurs after the program is completed to determine impact and effectiveness
Various methods can used to determine learning outcomes:

Pre and post test
Direct observation

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Research Concepts

Conducting literature review
Critically appraising literature
Facilitating incorporation of applicable research findings into practice

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Characteristics of Qualitative Research Designs

Holistic & contextual
Questions explored through: identification of patterns in narratives, observations, comparisons & contrasts, inferences, application of insight & use of intuition
Can be exploratory, descriptive or used for theory verification
Information is sought that will reflect present & past situations with emphasis on the whole, rather than a part of the experience

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Purposes of Qualitative Research

Contribute to basic knowledge & theory (basic research)
Understand a problem to produce change (applied research)
Improve a program (formative research)
Determine the effectiveness of a program (summative research)

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Qualitative Methods

Grounded theory: attempts to identify underlying themes surrounding a particular social psychological process to formulate theory

Data are studied, coded and compared for themes to emerge

Ethnography: aims to get at the nature of everyday experience within the context of culture

Methods involve: collecting, describing and analyzing data in a way that reflects the culture or subculture of people

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Steps in Conducting Qualitative Research

Sample selection: purposeful
Data collection techniques: focus groups, participant observation, interviews & field notes
Consider issues of rigor: essential for scientific merit & include reliability, credibility, transferability & validity
Analysis: simple approach involves transcription, coding & development of themes or patterns

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Limitations of Qualitative Research

Limitations of qualitative research:

closely related to its strength, not intended for generalization

Examples of applied qualitative research: find on pages 11-17 of chapter 19

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Research Study Design

Either observational or experimental
Choice of study design based on:

populations available for study
frequencies of exposures & outcomes in the sample population
available data or participants

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Types of Epidemiological Studies

Descriptive
Analytical
Cross-sectional
See Table 20-1 for comparison of Epi Study Designs.

Know the advantages and disadvantages

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Others Types of Epidemiological Studies

Case-control
Cohort
Experimental
Randomized clinical trials
Systematic review

Case control studies begin with the identification of individuals who have the outcome of interest. Then a control group of individuals without the outcome is selected for comparison.

Cohort studies assess individuals with and without exposure to a potential risk factor who did not have the outcome of interest at study enrollment. For example, a study is undertaken to follow a population of hospitalized patients with and without exposure to invasive devices to determine the association of invasive device exposure and development of healthcare associated infections (HAIs).

Experimental studies are prospective studies designed to compare outcomes in individuals who are assigned to an experimental (intervention) or control (placebo or standard care) group. The intervention may be a procedure, drug, or other treatment, and the comparison group usually receives a placebo, the previously accepted treatment, or, if appropriate, no treatment.

In randomized clinical trials (RCTs) the participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups to ensure that the treatment allocation is unbiased.

Systematic reviews are used to identify, collect, analyze, and summarize evidence related to a specific research question. Some systematic reviews include a meta-analysis, where statistical methods are used to integrate the results of multiple and independent studies.

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Evaluation of Published Studies

Study the guide to reviewing published studies on Page 7 in Chapter 20.
Expect a question or two on this specific topic

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Chapter 8�Post-Study Session Quiz��

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1. Learning retention increases when:

Testing covers appropriate material
Learners are rewarded for attending classes
Application immediately follows instruction
Food is provided during training

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1. Learning retention increases when:

Testing covers appropriate material
Learners are rewarded for attending classes
Application immediately follows instruction
Food is provided during training

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2. Educators should develop a well-defined plan for each learning experience that includes:

Goals
Objectives
Appropriate teaching methods
All of the above

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2. Educators should develop a well-defined plan for each learning experience that includes:

Goals
Objectives
Appropriate teaching methods
All of the above

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3. Which of the following are present in well-written research methods sections except:

Time period of the study
Clear criteria for defining cases & controls
Questions the research will answer
Methods of quality assurance

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3. Which of the following are present in well-written research methods sections except:

Time period of the study
Clear criteria for defining cases & controls
Questions the research will answer
Methods of quality assurance

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4. Which section of research studies contains the assessment of internal validity & the influence of bias?�

Introduction
Results
Discussion
Methods

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4. Which section of research studies contains the assessment of internal validity & the influence of bias?�

Introduction
Results
Discussion
Methods