Alternatives to Student Outbound Mobility-Improving Students' Cultural Competency Skills Online to Improve Global Health Without Travel.

INTRODUCTION: Student outbound mobility is a major element in internationalization of medical education and global health education. However, this approach is often criticized, as it is inherently inequitable. Internationalization at home is a newer concept that aims to provide students with international skills and experiences without exchange travel. We report detailed outcomes of an international online program during the COVID-19 pandemic, which aimed to include acquisition of cultural awareness and competency-similar to what the students would have obtained if they had travelled abroad. METHOD: Sixty-eight students from 12 international universities participated in international small peer group collaborative work, and online networking. Perceived improvement of cultural competency using Likert scale and open-ended questions was used as a measure of success. Furthermore, students' definition of cultural competency in the different countries was obtained. RESULTS: Students improved their cultural competency skills. Data analysis supported statistically significant improvement of the above skills after the program, in comparison to the start of the program. DISCUSSION: Internationalization of medical education can be achieved at home-via structured online peer exchanges-and can provide students with intercultural skills and networking opportunities that are typically achieved via international in-person travel. The above represents a socially just and equitable way to reach all students and can result in improvement of their cultural competency, preparing them for their work in global health, and thereby resulting in improvement of global health. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-021-01332-9

Professional life cycle changes and their effect on knowledge level of dental practitioners

Utilizing a national data set (U.S.A.), the effect of age and age-related professional characteristics on dentists' knowledge with regard to prevention of infective endocarditis was examined. The following research questions were addressed: (1) Do age-related characteristics produce different effects on knowledge level at various stages of professional careers?; (2) What are the key changes in these age-related characteristics and what processes are suggested by these changes? Multiple regression analysis assessed the influence of potential predictors of variation in knowledge level with regard to prevention of infective endocarditis for the entire sample. Using these findings as a guide, variation in the effect of significant predictor variables was then analyzed for three time segments of approximately equal duration: early professional life . Age had a profoundly negative effect on knowledge level, i.e. the level progressively declines as clinicians grow older. The impact of the age-related characteristics on knowledge level of infective endocarditis prevention also varied according to the stage of the professional life cycle. Indices measuring the size or extent of theoretical understanding, in-office networks, institutional affiliations, and consulting networks were significant predictors of endocarditis prevention knowledge for younger clinicians. For those 40-54, only practice organization (office business and staff size and diversity) was a significant predictor, while for older clinicians theoretical understanding was the only significant predictor. Differences in the mean levels of these predictor (independent) variables across age groups were also examined via ANOVA. Level of activity, or extent of professional practice characteristics, varied from high to low with increased age on subject dentists. It is not necessarily age qua age which is responsible for the decline in knowledge level, but also age-related changes in professional life cycle attributes. Efforts to increase knowledge with regard to infective endocarditis prevention should focus on encouraging increased levels of activities on age-specific statistically significant predictor variables, with particular emphasis on increasing the level of theoretical understanding for the oldest and most deficient group.age knowledge dentists career

Predicting dentists' perceived occupational risk for HIV infection

This study posed two questions: what is the level of perceived occupational risk among American general practice dentists (GPDs)? What factors influence perception of occupational risk for HIV infection among GPDs? In data obtained from a national mail survey of 1351 GPDs (response rate, 88%) 31% of American GPDs expressed disagreement with the statement that HIV + individuals can be safely treated in their office settings. Of the 16 variables entered into a multiple regression equation, 9 variables had a statistically significant influence on dentists' assessment of occupational risk. In order of their influence they were (1) concern re the economic viability of the practice, (2) ethical obligation to treat patients at risk, (3) certainty of having treated patients with HIV infection, (4) risk attributed to four accidental occupational exposures, (5) concern re treatment of homosexuals, (6) relevant continuing education exposure, (7) personal worry re transmission of HIV infection from patients, (8) implementation of infection control behaviors, (9) number of patients seen per week. Statistically nonsignificant predictors of interest included age, knowledge level re HIV transmission routes, practice location in a high prevalence area, and perceived effectiveness of infection control behaviors. Results argue for intervention programs with less focus on delivery of factual information regarding the transmission of the disease and the effectiveness of infection control techniques, and more emphasis on the themes of practice economic viability, professional ethics, and structured educational encounters involving dentists' knowing exposure to HIV-infected patients.AIDS risk dentists survey

Dentists’ Management of the Diabetic Patient: Contrasting Generalists and Specialists

Objectives. We measured and contrasted general dentists’ and periodontists’ involvement in 3 areas of managing diabetic patients—assessment of health status, discussion of pertinent issues, and active management of patients—and identified and contrasted predictors of active management of diabetic patients. Methods. We conducted a cross-sectional mail survey of random samples of general dentists and periodontists in the northeastern United States during fall 2002, using lists from the 2001 American Dental Directory and the 2002 American Academy of Periodontology Directory. Responses were received from 105 of 132 eligible general dentists (response rate=80%) and from 103 of 142 eligible periodontists (response rate=73%). Results. Confidence, involvement with colleagues and medical experts, and professional responsibility were influential predictors of active management for periodontists (R(2)=0.46, P<.001). Variables pertaining to patient relations were significant predictors for general dentists (R(2)=0.55, P<.001). Conclusions. Our findings permitted us to assess and compare general dentists’ and periodontists’ behavior in 3 realms—assessment of diabetic patients’ health status, discussion of pertinent issues, and active management of diabetic patients—and to identify components of potentially effective targeted interventions aimed at increasing specialists’ and generalist dentists’ involvement in the active management of diabetic patients

Predictors of dentists' level of knowledge regarding the recommended prophylactic regimen for patients with rheumatic heart disease

Maintaining knowledge of clinical practices, confirming to the latest scientific information, is a major challenge for health professionals. The study aims were (1) to measure clinicians' knowledge and (2) to determine what social factors could best explain and predict those dental clinicians who are most knowledgeable about current expert recommendations for the use of appropriate antibiotic regimens for patients at risk for bacterial endocarditis. Telephone interviews were conducted with 322 New York State dentists, assigned to the study by a computer-generated randomization procedure from lists of oral surgeons, urban general practitioners and rural general practitioners. Data demonstrated extraordinary differences in level of knowledge between oral surgeons and general practitioners, while the level of knowledge between urban and rural general practice groups was quite similar. General Linear Model (GLM)-based analyses indicated that practice size, rationalization of practice, and practice setting and affiliations contributed to the explanation of knowledge level among general practitioners, when adjusted for age. R2s for each of those variables and age, ranged from a low of 0.132 to a high of 0.334. Age made a significant contribution to the explanation of knowledge level in all of the models presented, while the explanatory power of the practice structure variables varied according to respondent's locale (urban vs rural) and age (younger vs older). In order to assess the impact of these structural variables, they were dichotomized (high-low) and entered into a GLM program which accounted for age and locale. Differences in excess of 20 points (on a 0-100 knowledge scale) were sometimes noted. The findings demonstrate the importance of specifying variable relationships in explaining level of knowledge and also suggest, albeit indirectly, differences in the processes by which urban and rural and young and old general practitioners come to know.

Dentists' Willingness to Provide Expanded HIV Screening in Oral Health Care Settings: Results From a Nationally Representative Survey

Objectives. Using a nationally representative survey, we determined dentists’ willingness to provide oral rapid HIV screening in the oral health care setting. Methods. From November 2010 through November 2011, a nationally representative survey of general dentists (sampling frame obtained from American Dental Association Survey Center) examined barriers and facilitators to offering oral HIV rapid testing (n = 1802; 70.7% response). Multiple logistic regression analysis examined dentists’ willingness to conduct this screening and perceived compatibility with their professional role. Results. Agreement with the importance of annual testing for high-risk persons and familiarity with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations regarding routine HIV testing were positively associated with willingness to conduct such screening. Respondents’ agreement with patients’ acceptance of HIV testing and colleagues’ improved perception of them were also positively associated with willingness. Conclusions. Oral HIV rapid testing is potentially well suited to the dental setting. Although our analysis identified many predictors of dentists’ willingness to offer screening, there are many barriers, including dentists’ perceptions of patients’ acceptance, that must be addressed before such screening is likely to be widely implemented

Recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults through community sites for focus group discussions

Abstract Background Despite a body of evidence on racial/ethnic minority enrollment and retention in research, literature specifically focused on recruiting racially/ethnically diverse older adults for social science studies is limited. There is a need for more rigorous research on methodological issues and the efficacy of recruitment methods. Cultural obstacles to recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults include language barriers, lack of cultural sensitivity of target communities on the part of researchers, and culturally inappropriate assessment tools. Methods Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), this study critically appraised the recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults for focus groups. The initial approach involved using the physical and social infrastructure of the ElderSmile network, a community-based initiative to promote oral and general health and conduct health screenings in places where older adults gather, to recruit racial/ethnic minority adults for a social science component of an interdisciplinary initiative. The process involved planning a recruitment strategy, engaging the individuals involved in its implementation (opinion leaders in senior centers, program staff as implementation leaders, senior community-based colleagues as champions, and motivated center directors as change agents), executing the recruitment plan, and reflecting on the process of implementation. Results While the recruitment phase of the study was delayed by 6 months to allow for ongoing recruitment and filling of focus group slots, the flexibility of the recruitment plan, the expertise of the research team members, the perseverance of the recruitment staff, and the cultivation of change agents ultimately resulted in meeting the study targets for enrollment in terms of both numbers of focus group discussions (n = 24) and numbers of participants (n = 194). Conclusions This study adds to the literature in two important ways. First, we leveraged the social and physical infrastructure of an existing program to recruit participants through community sites where older adults gather. Second, we used the CFIR to guide the appraisal of the recruitment process, which underscored important considerations for both reaching and engaging this underserved population. This was especially true in terms of understanding the disparate roles of the individuals involved in implementing and facilitating the recruitment plan