Student Perceptions of Online Learning: Discussion Board Assignments

Background: Online education has experienced unparalleled online expansion in recent years. Quality design and course preparation has become increasingly important with the growth of technology-enriched instruction. Purpose: The study’s purpose was to increase understanding about what students perceive to be worthwhile discussion board assignments to improve both teaching strategy and instructional design for online courses. Methods: Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze student responses to three openended questions about discussion board assignments. Data were collected through an online survey (N = 45) during three different semesters. Results: Student participants reported the importance of sharing, peer insight, and topic relevance. Student-student and student instructor interaction within the discussion board assignment were also important. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate the importance of continued educational research regarding specific teaching strategies, facilitation techniques, teaching presence and student perceptions of meaningful discussion in asynchronous online discussion board forums

Student Perceptions about Online Collaborative Coursework

Objective: Collaborative coursework may improve student engagement but is often viewed as problematic by both students and faculty, particularly in the online classroom. The aim of this research is to present results of a retrospective, qualitative content analysis of student related perceptions about group work in the online classroom. Methods: Data analysis was completed with the use of qualitative content analysis (QCA), a valid research method for describing the meaning of qualitative data in a systematic way. QCA was used to inform the following research question: What perceptions do students have about working with a group in the online classroom? Data were collected through a retrospective analysis of student responses posted to discussion board forums. Responses of students (N = 192) enrolled in three different courses, over two semesters were analyzed by a team of two researchers. Results: Findings included student reflections about group work being a stressful, negative experience, with the asynchronous environment of the online classroom increasing student anxiety about group work. Students reported different academic goals and lack of participation among group members as common issues. In addition, students reported concern with group management or organization and the fairness of group work grading practices. Conclusions: These results inform a discussion of best practices, skills and technology faculty can use to transform online group work into a positive learning experience for all students. Online education needs to be meaningful and responsive to meet students’ needs. Research has shown group work can improve student engagement and facilitate accomplishment; however, the negotiation of group work processes can be stressful for students and faculty, particularly in the online classroom

A Review of Clinical Informatics Competencies in Nursing to Inform Best Practices in Education and Nurse Faculty Development

AIM The aim of this literature review was to determine the state of the science related to clinical informatics competencies of registered nurses and to determine best practices in educational strategies for both nursing students and faculty. BACKGROUND Continued emphasis on the provision of evidence-based patient care has implications for requisite informatics-focused competencies to be threaded throughout all levels of nursing educational programs. METHOD Whittemore and Knalf’s five-step integrative review process guided this research. An extensive search yielded 69 publications for critical appraisal. RESULTS Results suggest nursing educational programs do not adhere to standardized criteria for teaching nursing informatics competencies. Another identified literature gap was the scarcity of research related to informatics training requirements for nurse educators. CONCLUSION Findings support the need for continued research to provide clear direction about the expected clinical informatics competencies of graduate nurses and what training faculty need to facilitate student learning

Differentiated thyroid cancer: role of the lymph node dissection

Il cancro della tiroide è la più comune neplasia maligna endocrina con la più alta mortalità. La tiroidectomia totale è il trattamento primario per pazienti con cancro differenziato della tiroide (DTC) e si è dimostrata efficace e sicura. L’estensione della dissezione linfonodale rimane controversa tra esperti nel campo.Questa controversia persiste largamente anche per la mancanza di uno studio prospettico controllato randomizzato che riconosca come la dissezione linfonodale centrale (CLND) per cancro papillare della tiroide (PTC) conferisca alla tiroidectomia totale un aumentato rischio di ipoparatiroidismo e di lesione ricorrenziale permanente. Secondo la Consensus Conference del UEC’s Club la dissezione radicale terapeutica modificata del collo (MRND) dovrebbe essere eseguita solo in pazienti con evidenza di coinvolgimento lonfonodale neoplastico multiplo. Sebbene la dissezione linfonodale centrale possa aumentare il rischio di ipoparatiroidismo e di lesione del ricorrente a confronto con la tiroidectomia totale senza CLND, essa può ridurre le metastasi da PTC e probabilmente migliorare la sopravvivenza specifica della malattia. Offre inoltre un’alternativa sufficiente alla dissezione radicale profilattica modificata del collo. La dissezione linfonodale centrale selettiva deve essere eseguita da mani esperte, in pazienti ad alto rischio (maggiori di 50 anni, larga diffusione del tumore intra o extratiroidea), con l’estensione alle stazioni II-III-IV in caso di coinvolgimento linfonodale singolo in esse

Instructor Communication, or Academic Coaching, to Facilitate Student Engagement

This presentation will describe the results of a posttest-only control group study (N = 173) examining the effect of instructor communication, or academic coaching, on social, cognitive, and teaching presence within a large online course, as measured by the Community of Inquiry Survey (Arbaugh et al., 2008

Treatment of varicocele in subfertile men: the Cochrane review \u2013 a contrary opinion.

OBJECTIVE: A recent Cochrane meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials (RCTs) concluded that surgical or radiological treatment of varicocele in men from couples with otherwise unexplained subfertility cannot be recommended. The aim of the present study is to address criticisms of this review carrying out a critical analysis of all available RCTs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The eight randomised clinical trials selected in the last Cochrane Library systematic review have been evaluated. All RCTs including patients either with normal semen analysis or subclinical varicocele have been excluded. Inclusion criteria, number and clinical characteristics of randomised patients, and outcomes reported in terms of pregnancy rate one year after randomisation have been described in the remaining studies. RESULTS: Only 3/8 RCTs included patients with abnormal semen analysis and palpable varicocele. Overall 120 patients in the treatment group and 117 in the control group were randomised. The studies turned out to be heterogeneous in terms of inclusion criteria and clinical characteristics of the analysed patients. Their methodological quality and statistical power have to be considered poor. Moreover, the "as treated" cumulative analysis showed a significant increase in pregnancy rate in patients who underwent varicocele treatment (36.4%) compared with the control group (20%) (p = 0.009). CONCLUSIONS: The RCTs included in the last Cochrane review concerning the efficacy of varicocele treatment in subfertile couples were heterogeneous and methodologically poor. The pooling of these studies cannot result in a good quality meta-analysis. The Cochrane meta-analysis conclusions should not support guidelines recommendation against varicocele treatment in subfertile patients. Data from ongoing studies should provide more information in this topic

Patterns of treatment with PDE5 inhibitors in the clinical practice in Italy: longitudinal data from the Erectile Dysfunction Observational Study.

The Erectile Dysfunction Observational Study (EDOS) is a 6-months observational prospective multicentric study enrolling men with erectile dysfunction (ED) who asked, to be started on a treatment or to change a previous treatment. Aims of the study were to analyse the pattern of treatment and compare the efficacy of treatments used. Patients were enrolled during a normal hospital visit and were prescribed a treatment for ED. They were asked at baseline and after 3 and 6 months, to answer a set of questions from the International Index of Erectile Function, Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS) and Short Form of the Psychological and Interpersonal Relationships Scale questionnaires (SF-PAIRS). Clinicians were free to prescribe any therapy for ED available in the market, and to change therapy at any time during the study. Out of 1 338 patients, available for analysis at 6 months, 624 (47%) changed their treatment during the study and 714 (53%) continued with the drug prescribed at baseline. Patients assuming tadalafil had a significantly higher probability of maintaining the same treatment compared to sildenafil or vardenafil. There was no clinically significant difference in terms of efficacy, patient satisfaction, self-confidence and spontaneity between the different inhibitors of PDE5. The 'time concerns' domain score of SF-PAIRS, was statistically better in patients assuming tadalafil. In conclusion sildenafil, vardenafil and tadalafil show similar efficacy in the clinical practice. However, patients receiving tadalafil display a lower risk to discontinue or change the treatment

Patterns of treatment with PDE5 inhibitors in the clinical practice in Italy: longitudinal data from the Erectile Dysfunction Observational Study.

The Erectile Dysfunction Observational Study (EDOS) is a 6-months observational prospective multicentric study enrolling men with erectile dysfunction (ED) who asked, to be started on a treatment or to change a previous treatment. Aims of the study were to analyse the pattern of treatment and compare the efficacy of treatments used. Patients were enrolled during a normal hospital visit and were prescribed a treatment for ED. They were asked at baseline and after 3 and 6 months, to answer a set of questions from the International Index of Erectile Function, Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS) and Short Form of the Psychological and Interpersonal Relationships Scale questionnaires (SF-PAIRS). Clinicians were free to prescribe any therapy for ED available in the market, and to change therapy at any time during the study. Out of 1 338 patients, available for analysis at 6 months, 624 (47%) changed their treatment during the study and 714 (53%) continued with the drug prescribed at baseline. Patients assuming tadalafil had a significantly higher probability of maintaining the same treatment compared to sildenafil or vardenafil. There was no clinically significant difference in terms of efficacy, patient satisfaction, self-confidence and spontaneity between the different inhibitors of PDE5. The 'time concerns' domain score of SF-PAIRS, was statistically better in patients assuming tadalafil. In conclusion sildenafil, vardenafil and tadalafil show similar efficacy in the clinical practice. However, patients receiving tadalafil display a lower risk to discontinue or change the treatment