Innovative Collaborative Service-Learning Experience Among Dental Hygiene and Nurse Practitioner Students: A Pediatric Oral Health Pilot Study

Purpose: Preventive oral health behaviors are essential for children during early stages of development. The purpose of this study was to pilot an innovative, collaborative service-learning (ICSL) experience for dental hygiene (DH) and primary care nurse practitioner (NP) students to address pediatric oral health. Methods: A convenience sample of DH and NP students (n=12) participated in the development, planning and delivery of an ICSL activity focusing on pediatric oral health to 44 pre-school aged children. A learning management system was used for the communicating, planning and evaluating the ICSL activity. The interprofessional socialization of the participants was measured using the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale (ISVS-9A/9/B) survey prior to and following the ICSL experience. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Results: Twelve students agreed to participate in the ICSL experience (DH= 9 and NP=3) and completed the pre and post ISVS-9A/9B surveys. There was a positive change in interprofessional socialization scales (0.42) after the ICSL experience (p=0.066) for all participants. Marginal statistically significant differences were identified among the DH participants (p=0.058) in their pre and post interprofessional socialization scores. Conclusion: Within the limitations of this pilot study, the ICSL experience had a positive impact on NP and DH students\u27 socialization to interprofessional collaboration. This low resource, service-learning educational project has potential for easy integration within dental hygiene and advanced practice nursing curricula

ISA84/IEC61511 SIS Functional Safety Compliance: It’s a Journey Worth Taking

PresentationAchieving full functional safety compliance at a plant will not just happen; it takes a focused effort from dedicated personnel and a supporting management staff. It’s a lot of work, but the potential safety and reliability benefits are well worth the investment. This paper will walk through the steps employed at several sites in Texas and hopes to provide stimulus for others to follow suite. The first ISA 84 (ISA 84.01-1996) functional safety standard initiated the safety lifecycle; the second, internationally adapted version, ISA 84 (ISA 84.00.01-2004) refined the process through the Functional Safety Management (FSM) plan and various other vital additions. Each helped provide a sturdy framework for an expected sustainable process for the remainder of the subject facility’s life and are considered good practices by OSHA for PSM. It is fully believed that if done properly, the end result of applying the ISA84 standard to complete compliance will be a safer and more cost effectively controlled process environment

Role of Spirituality and Religion in Family Quality of Life for Families of Children with Disabilities

Results from a qualitative inquiry investigating conceptualization of family quality of life are provided. Focus groups and individual interviews were comprised of 187 individuals that included family members (e.g., parents, siblings) of children with a disability, eight individuals with a disability, family members of children without a disability, service providers, and administrators. Data were collected in urban and rural settings to elicit participants’ understanding of domains of family quality of life. Themes of spirituality and religion in the context of family quality of life for families of children with disabilities are explored in this article. Families described the importance of spirituality in their lives and their participation in religious communities. Discussion and implications include strategies to enhance family spiritual well being, to provide spiritually sensitive supports, and to promote inclusive religious communities for children with mental retardation and developmental disabilities (MR/DD) and their families

Measuring the quality of family-professional partnerships in special education services

This is the published version, also found here: http://cec.metapress.com/content/jr8655lg61k1n440/?p=edbc223bb2fb4291b6b55663014711a2&pi=3One difficulty in monitoring the quality of family-professional partnerships has been the lack of a psychometrically acceptable and sufficiently general instrument with which to assess them. The current work describes the development of the Family-Professional Partnership Scale, which assesses parents' perceptions of the importance of and their satisfaction with family-professional partnerships. Indicators were constructed from qualitative research on families with children with and without disabilities, and the scale was refined across two field tests that included families with children with a wide range of ages and disability types and severity. Both the 18-item overall scale and the two 9-item subscales demonstrated excellent psychometric properties. The possible uses of this scale in future research and service delivery are discus

Calidad de vida familiar: un estudio cualitativo

En esta investigación cualitativa se investiga la conceptualización de la calidad de vida familiar. Se llevaron a cabo grupos de interés y entrevistas individuales con 187 individuos: miembros de la familia (p.ej., padres, hermanos) de niños con discapacidad, individuos con discapacidad, familias de niños sin discapacidad, proveedores de servicios y administradores. Se recogieron datos en entornos rurales y urbanos para averiguar la concepción de los participantes sobre calidad de vida familiar. Se exponen las implicaciones en términos de líneas futuras de investigación y apoyo a familias

Relationship Between Parent Satisfaction Regarding Partnerships With Professionals and Age of Child

In the past, the assessment of families’ satisfaction with the quality of their partnerships with the professionals who serve their children has been restricted to specific programs or age groups, precluding investigation of the relationship between parents’ perspectives on satisfaction and the importance of partnership components for children at different ages. Differences in policies, service models, and family needs at different life-cycle stages suggest a need to understand how satisfaction might differ among parents of children of different ages. In this study, 147 parents completed the Beach Center Family-Professional Partnership Scale to describe the perceived importance of and satisfaction with 18 aspects of their child and family’s relationships with their primary service provider. No differences in importance ratings among parents of children ages birth to 3 years, 3 to 5 years, and 6 to 12 years emerged, but there were differences among satisfaction ratings, with parents of older children reporting lower satisfaction. Exploratory analyses relating satisfaction levels across other demographic variables also took place. Implications of these findings for future research and application are discussed

Perspectives of Five Stakeholder Groups: Challenging Behavior of Individuals with Mental Retardation and/or Autism

Data from five focus groups, each representing a different stakeholder constituency interested in the challenging behavior of individuals with mental retardation and/or autism, were reported. Emergent themes across administrators and policy makers, families, friends, individuals with disabilities, and teachers and practitioners included current barriers faced; practical, positive solutions found; and preferences for helpful informational products concerning challenging behavior. Key recommendations focus on the implications of this information for research, training, and dissemination activities

Calidad de vida familiar: un estudio cualitativo

En esta investigación cualitativa se investiga la conceptualización de la calidad de vida familiar. Se llevaron a cabo grupos de interés y entrevistas individuales con 187 individuos: miembros de la familia (p.ej., padres, hermanos) de niños con discapacidad, individuos con discapacidad, familias de niños sin discapacidad, proveedores de servicios y administradores. Se recogieron datos en entornos rurales y urbanos para averiguar la concepción de los participantes sobre calidad de vida familiar. Se exponen las implicaciones en términos de líneas futuras de investigación y apoyo a familias