Basic Needs Adversities Among Counselors in Training: A Cluster Analysis

During the intersection of COVID-19 with ongoing identity-based injustices in the US, Counselors-in-Training (CITs) experience unprecedented challenges including new or exacerbated basic needs insecurity. In this descriptive study, the authors examined Basic Needs Adversities (BNA) in a national sample of CITs (n = 233) during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors used cluster analysis to investigate CITs reported BNAs and identified four subgroups of participants based on similarities and dissimilarities in the number and type of BNAs endorsed. The authors discuss implications for training and supervision with a focus on social justice in counselor education

Counselors in Training Educational Impacts and Perceived Adequacy of Supports Amidst COVID-19

Counselors-in-Training (CITs) experience complex challenges, stressors, and changes during the COVID-19 pandemic and concurrent sociopolitical crises. The authors examined CIT’s academic and clinical experiences during the first year of COVID-19, including their perception of the adequacy of their training and supports to provide counseling during this time. Many CITs experienced a range of changes including transitioning from face-to-face training and supervision to distance learning, telehealth, and telesupervision. The authors discuss implications for training and supervision, including considerations related to distance learning and digital competence

Mortality salience and worldview defense: the effect of death awareness and self-esteem on multicultural counseling competence

The purpose of this study, based on Terror Management Theory (TMT; Solomon et al., 1991) and Multicultural Counseling Competency literature, was to investigate a) how increased death awareness affects counselors' self evaluations of their MCCs, b) how self esteem moderates the effects of death reminders on counselors' self evaluations of their MCCs, and c) how demographic variables affect counselors' self evaluations of their MCCs following death reminders. 141 master's and doctoral level counseling students enrolled in a CACREP-accredited counseling program in the Southeast or Southwest regions of the United States were randomly assigned to either a death awareness group (experimental group) or a control group. Participants in the death awareness group experienced increased death awareness prior to completing the Multicultural Counseling Inventory (MCI; Sodowsky, 1994); and participants in the control group completed the MCI prior to experiencing increased death awareness. A one-way ANOVA was run to test the difference between groups. Results revealed that participants in the death awareness group self rated their MCCs (including the MCI Overall scale and the MCI Knowledge, MCI Skills, and MCI Relationship subscales) lower than did the control group. No differences between groups were revealed on the MCI Awareness subscale. A multiple regression using the general linear model was run to analyze the effects of conscious death fear on counseling students' perceived MCCs. Results indicated that death concern did not affect counseling students' self perceived MCCs. Also a series of linear regressions were run to understand the moderating effect of self esteem, multicultural training, and other demographic variables on counseling students' perceived MCCs follow increased death awareness. Results revealed that self esteem and multicultural training did not moderate the effect of increased death awareness on counseling students' self perceived MCCs. In partial support of the research hypotheses, results also revealed that, aside from graduate level (master's and doctoral students), demographic variables did not have a moderating effect on increased death awareness. This study is a first step in a research agenda aimed at understanding the effect of increased death awareness on counselors' competence in working with diverse clients. This study contributes to the MCC and TMT bodies of literature, particularly, the practical application of TMT, and to the training of multiculturally competent counselors. It is anticipated that, through this study and future studies, effective training strategies that reduce the negative effects of increased death awareness on counseling students' MCCs can be developed and implemented in counselor training programs. Of course, before that can be accomplished, more research is needed

Are patients willing participants in the new wave of community-based medical education in regional and rural Australia?

Community-based medical education is escalating to meet the increased demand for quality clinical education in expanded settings and patient participation is vital to the sustainability of this endeavour. This study aimed to investigate patients’ views on being used as an educational resource in medical student teaching, and whether they are being under- or over-used

Practice Feedback Interventions: 15 Suggestions for Optimizing Effectiveness

Electronic practice data are increasingly being used to provide feedback to encourage practice improvement. However, evidence suggests that despite decades of experience, the effects of such interventions vary greatly and are not improving over time. Guidance on providing more effective feedback does exist, but it is distributed across a wide range of disciplines and theoretical perspectives. Through expert interviews; systematic reviews; and experience with providing, evaluating, and receiving practice feedback, 15 suggestions that are believed to be associated with effective feedback interventions have been identified. These suggestions are intended to provide practical guidance to quality improvement professionals, information technology developers, educators, administrators, and practitioners who receive such interventions. Designing interventions with these suggestions in mind should improve their effect, and studying the mechanisms underlying these suggestions will advance a stagnant literature

Impact of CONSORT extension for cluster randomised trials on quality of reporting and study methodology : review of random sample of 300 trials, 2000-8

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Evidence Synthesis for Complex Interventions Using Meta-Regression Models

This study was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (grants FDN-143269 and FRN-123345) and a research fellowship held by K.J.K. (Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarship GSD-134936). N.M.I. holds a Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Implementation of Evidence Based Practice and a Clinician Scientist Award from the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). J.M.G. held a Canada Research Chair in Health Knowledge Transfer and Uptake during the time of the study’s conduct and was supported by a Foundation Grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. D.M. was supported by a University of Ottawa Research Chair during the time of study conduct.Peer reviewedPublisher PD