Exploring Substance Use Disorders Community Outpatient Counselors’ Experiences Treating Clients with Co-Occurring Medical Conditions: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Abstract EXPLORING SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS COMMUNITY OUTPATIENT COUNSELORS’ EXPERIENCES TREATING CLIENTS WITH CO-OCCURRING MEDICAL CONDITIONS. AN INTERPRETATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS Lauretta Anne Cathers, Ph.D. A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2013 Major Director: Amy Armstrong, PhD, Chair, Rehabilitation Counseling The Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis study presents the findings from a qualitative study examining substance use disorders (SUD) community outpatient treatment counselors’ experiences treating clients with co-occurring medical conditions. Interviews from five SUD community outpatient treatment counselors resulted in four emerging super-ordinate themes. The findings illustrate the relationships between SUDs, medical conditions and other predisposing, enabling and need factors. In order to assist clients in focusing on therapy, counselors work to identify resources to treat the basic needs of the clients, including medical care. Challenges included limited resources, complex system processes, and client fear and apathy. In addition, various unique challenges related to medical conditions treated by potentially habit forming medications and traumatic brain injury were identified. Counselors discussed how their roles and responsibilities have expanded to include case management and additional responsibility for the overall well-being of the clients they serve. They encouraged SUD educators to include more education on counselor self-care, trauma, pain conditions and the assessment process. Implications from the study highlight the need for integrated behavioral and physical health care

Toward An Identity for the Field of Doctoral Education in Health Sciences

The Association of Doctoral Programs in Health Sciences (ADPHS) was informally established in November 2019, officially incorporated in August 2021, and is currently a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization comprised of the directors of member doctoral programs of health sciences. The ADPHS grew from informal discussions among program directors who agreed that a major problem in the field of doctoral education in health sciences was the lack of a clearly defined and easily articulable identity. The discussions led to the drafting of an informal and nonscientific survey used to help clarify the current health sciences education environment, relevant emerging trends, and the educational philosophies adopted by the directors of health sciences doctoral programs nationally. The results of the survey and follow-up discussions revealed a strong consensus among program directors that the field of doctorate education in health sciences is uniformly characterized by its interdisciplinary nature. In this position paper, we provide the rationale for the formal position of the ADPHS that the identity of the field of doctoral education in health sciences is based on its interdisciplinary approach to education

Introductory patient communication training for medical physics graduate students: Pilot experience.

Despite medical physics becoming a more patient-facing part of the radiation oncology team, medical physics graduate students have no training in patient communication. An introductory patient communication training for medical physics graduate students is presented here. This training exposes participants to foundational concepts and effective communication skills through a lecture and it allows them to apply these concepts through realistic simulated patient interactions. The training was conducted virtually, and eight students participated. The impact of the training was evaluated based on changes in both confidence and competence of the participants patient communication skills. Participants were asked to fill out a survey to assess their confidence on communicating with patients before and after the training. They also underwent a simulated patient interaction pre- and postlecture. Their performance during these was evaluated by both the simulated patient actors and the participants themselves using a rubric. Each data set was paired and analyzed for significance using a Wilcoxon rank-sum test with an alpha of 0.05. Participants reported significantly higher confidence in their feeling of preparedness to interact with patients (mean = 2.38 vs. 3.88, p = 0.008), comfort interacting independently (mean = 2.00 vs. 4.00, p = 0.002), comfort showing patients they are actively listening (mean = 3.50 vs. 4.50, p = 0.005), and confidence handling challenging patient interactions (mean = 1.88 vs. 3.38, p = 0.01), after the training. Their encounter scores, as evaluated by the simulated patient actors, significantly increased (mean = 77% vs. 91%, p = 0.022). Self-evaluation scores increased, but not significantly (mean = 62% vs. 68%, p = 0.184). The difference between the simulated patient and self-evaluation scores for the postinstruction encounter was statistically significant (p = 0.0014). This patient communication training for medical physics graduate students is effective at increasing both the confidence and the competence of the participants in the subject. We propose that similar trainings be incorporated into medical physics graduate training programs prior to students entering into residency