The use of an e-learning constructivist solution in workplace learning

We wished to investigate whether an e-learning approach which uses constructivist principles can be successfully applied to train employees in a highly specialised skill thought to require expert individuals and extensive prolonged training. The approach involved the development of an e-learning package which included simulations and interactivity, then experimental testing in a case study workplace environment with the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data to assess the effectiveness of the package. Our study shows that this e-learning strategy improved the skills of the inexperienced operator significantly. We therefore propose that such programmes could be used as a work based training aid and used as a model system for the training of employees in complex skilled tasks in the workplace. This research demonstrates that the e-learning can be applied outside the traditional learning environment to train unskilled employees to undertake complex practical tasks which traditionally would involve prohibitively expensive instruction. This work also illustrates that simulations and interactivity are powerful tools in the design of successful e-learning packages in preparing learners for real world practical situations. Finally this study shows that workplace learners can be better served by elearning environments rather than conventional training as they allow asynchronous learning and private study which are valued by employees who have other demands on their time and are more comfortable receiving tuition privately Relevance to industry: E-learning using constructivist principles, and incorporating simulations and interactivity can be used successfully in the training of highly specialised and skilled tasks required in the modern workplace

Participant evaluation of an education module on interprofessional collaboration for students in healthcare studies

Abstract: Background Interprofessional collaboration is considered a key-factor to deliver the highest quality of care. Interprofessional collaboration (IPC) assumes a model of working together, in particular with awareness of the process of interprofessional collaboration, to develop an integrated and cohesive answer to the needs of the client/family/population. Educational modules are developed in response to a perceived need to improve interprofessional collaboration for the benefit of patientcare. Up until 2005 no explicit module on interprofessional collaboration existed in the education programs of the Antwerp University Association (AUHA). During a decade the Interprofessional Collaboration In Healthcare (IPCIHC) module is organised and evaluated by its participants. Methods One group, post-test design was used to gather data from the participating students using a structured questionnaire. Data was collected between March 2005 and March 2014 from participating final year students in healthcare educational programs. Results 3568 (84 % overall response) students evaluated the IPCIHC module from 2005 up to 2014. Over 80 % of the participants were convinced the IPCIHC increased their knowledge and changed their understanding that it will impact their future professional relationships, and felt a greater understanding about problem-solving in healthcare teams. Even though the results indicate that the goals of the IPCIHC module were achieved, less than 60 % of the participants experienced a change in attitude towards other professional groups. Conclusions Despite the positive outcomes from the participants, the challenge still remains to keep on educating future healthcare providers in interprofessional collaboration in order to achieve an increase in interprofessional behaviour towards other professional groups. Research is needed to investigate the effectiveness of undergraduate programs on the quality and safety of patientcare in practice

Multidisciplinary Teamwork in a UK Regional Secure Mental Health Unit a Matter for Negotiation?

Multidisciplinary teamwork in healthcare is strongly advocated in policy documents and the professional literature, but evidence about its value is sparse. This paper argues that multidisciplinary rhetoric disguises the complexity of the relational processes involved. These processes are explored with reference to a qualitative study, conducted during 2002–2004, of a UK medium secure forensic mental healthcare unit. Although some instructive examples of selective collaboration emerged from the present study, in general, non-medical professionals felt that their capacity to negotiate new ways of working was thwarted by medical dominance. Patients, the recipients of interventions from a range of professions, mostly bracketed them together as an all-powerful 'they'. Multidisciplinary working promoted only limited partnership in this organizational setting, and became primarily a process through which structural differences were reproduced. The paper draws on insights derived from symbolic interactionist theory to explore the achievement of, and failure to achieve, collaboration across professional boundaries. It will be argued, firstly, that organizational constraints on multidisciplinary collaboration together with actors' attempts to overcome them can be usefully analysed in terms of a dialectic between role-taking and role-making; and, secondly, that the impact of professional power differences can be understood through analysis of organizations as autopoietic systems

Professional differences in interprofessional working

UK government policy is encouraging healthcare staff to blur traditional roles, in the drive to increase joint working between practitioners. However, there is currently a lack of clarity regarding the impact that changes to traditional working practice might have on staff delivering the services, or on patient care. In this article, we report findings from three qualitative case studies examining interprofessional practice in stroke care, in which the influence of professional differences emerged as a significant theme. We draw on findings from individual semi-structured interviews, as well as fieldwork observations, to describe the influence of professional knowledge and skills, role and identity, and power and status considerations in interprofessional working. The insights that were gained contribute to the understanding of how professional differences impact on healthcare staff joint working, and suggest that the elements identified need to be fully considered in drives towards changed working practice

District health authority family planning services in England and Wales Two surveys undertaken in 1982 and 1984 on behalf of the Family Planning Association

5.00SIGLEAvailable from British Library Lending Division - LD:85/23536(District) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Design of oscillatory dynamics in numerical simulations of compartment-based enzyme systems

Enzymatic reactions that yield non-neutral products are known to involve feedback due to the bell-shaped pH-rate curve of the enzyme. Compartmentalizing the reaction has been shown to lead to transport-driven oscillations in theory; however, there have been few reproducible experimental examples. Our objective was to determine how the conditions could be optimized to achieve pH oscillations. We employed numerical simulations to investigate the hydrolysis of ethyl acetate in a confined esterase enzyme system, examining the influence of key factors on its behavior. Specific parameter ranges that lead to bistability and self-sustained pH oscillations and the importance of fast base transport for oscillations in this acid-producing system are highlighted. Suggestions are made to expand the parameter space for the occurrence of oscillations, including modifying the maximum of the enzyme pH-rate curve and increasing the negative feedback rate. This research not only sheds light on the programmable nature of enzyme-driven pH regulation but also furthers knowledge on the optimal design of such feedback systems for experimentalists