Professor Gwendolyn Gilbert and Dr Suyin Hor feature in this months podcast, discussing their retrospective/prospective observational study that uses interrupted time-series analyses, to assess the effects of the VRE project on hand hygiene compliance, inpatient MRSA infections and inpatient MRSA colonisation prevalence. The VRE project was associated with changes in IPC behaviour and outcomes, however separate contributions of VRE (the intervention), HPD and hand hygiene compliance were uncertain. A fascinating methodology and paper, we hope you enjoy!

Anne Honey and Merrolee Penman from the Sydney School of Health Sciences, chat with Lynn about their paper "‘You actually see what occupational therapists do in real life’: Outcomes and critical features of first-year practice education placements". They discuss how practice educators and academics need to design first year placements to ensure that students are provided with experiences that incorporate reality, participation and making connections to a bigger picture of occupational therapy service provision.

In this episode we speak to Dr Hannah McGinness and A/Prof Karen Scott from the Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Children's Hospital at Westmead Clinical School, about their paper "An education intervention to increase student engagement in feedback".

The study conducted surveys among three consecutive student cohorts undertaking three fort-nightly paediatric clinical attachments, with quantitative and qualitative responses  compared between groups. Hannah and Karen discuss how these responses lead to the conclusion that a brief one-off student-directed feedback workshop may improve feedback-seeking and student satisfaction with feedback.

Dr Belinda Kenny and Dr Yobelli Jimenez from the Sydney School of Health Sciences share their expertise in publication "Ethics in Professional Practice: An Education Resource for Health Science Students". They discuss how to engage students in the topic of ethics and facilitate their skills to identify, manage and communicate ethical issues during professional placements. The resource was implemented with a cohort of 15 graduate-entry exercise physiology students and 59 undergraduate speech pathology students from the University of Sydney. Findings indicated that students valued the authentic ethics scenarios but experienced challenges when navigating online learning activities.

Join Lynn Monrouxe and Andrew Bartlett, as they discuss Andrew's systematic scoping review of competencies of preceptors in health professions. Andrew explains his publishing strategies, and the key differences for authors considering a rapid review verse systematic scoping review. The paper found that competencies with defined performance indicators allow for effective measurement and may be modifiable with training. To measure preceptor competency, the preceptor perspective, as well as peer and preceptee assessment is recommended.

In our latest episode, Lynn Monrouxe talks to medical anthropologist Carol Pizzuti, a current PhD student at the University of Sydney. Carol and Lynn discuss the paper Optimizing Multisource Feedback Implementation for Australasian Physicians, written by Carol and her colleagues Michael Pooley and Michele Daly. The findings discussed highlight the importance of optimizing multisource feedback (MSF) in continuing professional development activities.

Sue Randall shares how team based learning can foster respectful intercultural connections and disrupt othering processes for international students in a nursing program. The small group interactions also highlight racial stereotyping and ways micro-aggressions impact the learning experience of international students and the power differential between domestic and international students. 

Paper: Randall, S., Crawford, T., River,.J, Us and them: The experience of international nursing students engaged in team based learning: A qualitative descriptive study, Nurse Education Today, Volume 92 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2020.104527

Guest: Sue Randall, Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney

For more information, visit Waranara

In this episode, Cathryn Forsyth reflects on the impact of being part of a diverse team of Aboriginal and non-Indigenous researchers which was advised by a First Nations reference group in her cultural competency journey. Her research resulted in the development of a First Nations cultural competence model to assist dental and oral health program curricula.

Paper: Forsyth, C., Irving, M., Short, S., Tennant, M. and Gilroy, J. (2019), Students Don't Know What They Don't Know: Dental and Oral Health Students' Perspectives on Developing Cultural Competence Regarding Indigenous Peoples. Journal of Dental Education, 83: 679-686. https://doi.org/10.21815/JDE.019.078

Guest: Cathryn Forsyth, Sydney Dental School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney

For more information, visit Waranara

In this episode, we learn more about what it means to be culturally competent as Associate Professor John Gilroy, a Yuin man from the NSW South Coast, tells us passionately about his experiences of living and working with Aboriginal peoples and how he had to practice cultural safety and competence across Australia.

Paper: Forsyth, C., Irving, M., Short, S., Tennant, M. and Gilroy, J. (2019), Students Don't Know What They Don't Know: Dental and Oral Health Students' Perspectives on Developing Cultural Competence Regarding Indigenous Peoples. Journal of Dental Education, 83: 679-686. https://doi.org/10.21815/JDE.019.078

Guest: John Gilroy, Sydney School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney

For more information, visit Waranara