Volume 9 (2022): Issue 1 (January 2022)

Caring for patients with a malignant brain tumor is complex and requires a high degree of coordination. The disease reduces life expectancy and affects quality of life. Therefore, patients often depend on the support of their relatives. To achieve better care for such patients and their relatives, a Department of Neurosurgery at a Swiss university hospital introduced a Nurse Practitioner (NP) and their service in 2017. 18 months after implementation, an evaluation of this NP role was conducted. It was aimed for to explore the experience of the interprofessional health care team.

A qualitative research design was used. Eight individual interviews and one focus group interview were conducted with representatives of the interprofessional health care team. Using a literature-based structured interview guide, the experience of participants was explored. Interviews were analyzed thematically.

The NP and their service was appreciated. Collaboration with the medical profession and the coordination of profession-specific demands also improved. The NP as a constant person of contact had a positive effect on the continuity of care e.g., with regard to discharge management. Medical doctors and registered nurses experienced an improved patient satisfaction. Further need for improvement was identified regarding the clarification of the NP role and the interprofessional collaboration.

The study reports on the successful introduction of an NP and their service in oncological care; it demonstrates that the implementation of this role can also be beneficial in acute inpatient care.

Stress and poor working conditions can affect the health and satisfaction of health professionals. Until now, the perspective of the staff has not been sufficiently considered in the development of solutions. The aim was to capture the wishes and recommendations of health professionals that could contribute to an improvement of the work situation from their perspective.

Semistructured focus group interviews with health professionals (nurses, midwifes, medical-technical-therapeutic professions and physicians) were conducted and analyzed using knowledge mapping and a deductive approach.

Between June and November 2018, 128 health professionals from Swiss acute hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, nursing homes, and outpatient services participated in a total of 24 focus group interviews. They expressed the need to incorporate wishes into staff scheduling and to address vacation planning at an early stage. Other suggestions were to be able to take advantage of further training opportunities and to live a positive feedback and error culture, as well as to establish a clear division of roles and tasks.

The healthcare staff interviewed showed clear ideas about what should be improved to reduce workload. There is a great need for action in the general conditions as well as in leadership and management.

Complex interprofessional programs in health care are dependent on the valid measurement of outcomes. The iMTA Productivity Costs Questionnaire (iPCQ) is one of the few instruments measuring productivity in a comprehensive way which is available in German language. This study explores the validity of the German-language iPCQ with a focus on test content and response processes. The aim of this study is to validate the German version of the iPCQ for the use with people with chronic conditions in Switzerland and to make suggestions for adaptation to the developers.

This study is a qualitative validation study. We conducted cognitive interviews with people with chronic illnesses and with other experts and analysed them based on the framework method.

Participants had problems understanding many items and explanations and remembering correct answers. Furthermore, the study revealed construct-related problems in measuring the productivity of people with partial incapacity for work.

The results show that German version of the questionnaire needs improvement in order to guarantee validity and reliability.

With a shift in healthcare from diagnosis-centered to human- and interprofessional-centered work, allied health professionals (AHPs) may encounter dilemmas in daily work because of discrepancies between values of learned professional protocols and their personal values, the latter being a component of the personal dimension. The personal dimension can be defined as a set of personal components that have a substantial impact on professional identity. In this study, we aim to improve the understanding of the role played by the personal dimension, by answering the following research question: What is known about the personal dimension of the professional identity of AHPs in (allied) health literature?

In the scoping review, databases, CINAHL, ERIC, Medline, PubMed, and PsychINFO were searched for studies focusing on what is regarded as ‘the personal dimension of professional identity’ of AHPs in the health literature; 81 out of 815 articles were included and analyzed in this scoping review. A varying degree of attention for the personal dimension within the various allied health professions was observed.

After analysis, we introduce the concept of four aspects in the personal dimension of AHPs. We explain how these aspects overlap to some degree and feed into each other. The first aspect encompasses characteristics like gender, age, nationality, and ethnicity. The second aspect consists of the life experiences of the professional. The third involves character traits related to resilience and virtues. The fourth aspect, worldview, is formed by the first three aspects and consists of the core beliefs and values of AHPs, paired with personal norms.

These four aspects are visualized in a conceptual model that aims to make AHPs more aware of their own personal dimension, as well as the personal dimension of their colleagues intra- and interprofessionally. It is recommended that more research be carried out to examine how the personal dimension affects allied health practice.

Information on nurse educator education is scarce. The present study thus aims to provide an overview of the requirements for and standards of nurse educator education in six European countries in order to enable further reflection and promote discourse on the topic. Methods: A descriptive international cross-sectional comparative study was conducted across six European countries. Data were collected via an online questionnaire completed by experts in nurse educator education or in organisations with specialist knowledge about nurse educator preparation (n = 11). The data were analysed, compared, and condensed.

The participating countries differ in terms of their educational requirements and the working environments they provide for nurse educators. Formal nurse educator education is available in three of the six countries. Furthermore, in the countries with formal education for nurse educators, differences exist in terms of the regulation and implementation of the education. The educational requirements of nurse educators in higher education are mostly not specific to nursing and are instead general requirements for professional (tertiary) or higher education.

The analysis reveals heterogeneous regulations, standards, and pathways in the education of nurse educators in the six different counties included in the study. Despite some formal and content-related similarities, no uniform picture of the educational requirements, programmes, or standards was identified. The results of this international comparative research confirm the need for further research that examines whether the education of nurse educators meets the global need both for skilled nurses and for more Europe-wide collaboration in nurse educator education.

New technologies, for example, telerehabilitation (TR) tools, can support physiotherapists’ work. Even though studies have demonstrated their potential, TR is not yet fully implemented in Austrian outpatient physiotherapy. As a result of the Coronavirus pandemic and the associated lockdowns, physiotherapists in Austria were confronted with the challenge of offering therapies without physical contact. This study aims to investigate opinions and experiences of physiotherapists in Austria regarding TR and its implementation in different clinical fields.

A qualitative research design with expert interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted. Data were analysed using content analysis. The categories were formed following a deductive-inductive approach.

The interview partners considered opportunities for using synchronous TR in internal medicine as well as orthopaedics and traumatology, especially in later, exercise-dominated stages. In addition, using TR can be supportive for patient education. In the field of neurology, synchronous TR is viewed with some criticism, especially when used for people with severe neuropsychological disorders. Asynchronous TR is considered useful across all disciplines and could support physical therapy from the first therapy session and throughout the treatment. Important questions regarding liability, billing, or data protection still need to be clarified. Interdisciplinary approaches in TR should also be pursued to improve care.

The use of asynchronous TR in addition to regular physiotherapy is seen as promising in all clinical fields. In general, when implementing TR, the needs and requirements of different fields should be considered. Moreover, various framework conditions still need to be clarified for further implementation of TR.

Early health profession learners hold stereotypes about their own and other professions. Socialising students through interprofessional education (IPE) early in their training facilitates the development of their beliefs and values surrounding their professional and interprofessional identities. This study evaluates the effect of a 3-week, virtual IPE intervention in early health professional learners.

Students reflected on their functioning as an interprofessional team through discussion and written prompts which were coded by two faculty members for themes and trends. Exposure to developing an interprofessional identity and socialisation within an IPE team were measured through pre- and post-intervention surveys containing the Interprofessional Socialisation and Valuing Scale (ISVS).

Students increased their positive attitudes towards IPE from pre- to post-intervention module as well as socialisation and readiness across all ISVS subscales: self-perception of working together, value, and comfort (all p < .001). Students reflected that ‘taking time to get to know each other’ (n = 23 teams; 42%) and ‘allowing everyone to contribute’ (= 17; 31%) were key factors for team development. Individual reflections on what students would work on the next time they worked in an interprofessional team revealed ‘communication’ as important (n = 87; 45%).

Health profession students who engaged in the module reflected on how their interprofessional team functioned and identified what helped or hindered them to work as a team. The opportunities to reflect on how their own professional identity within the context of an interprofessional team led to evidence of socialising into an interprofessional team. Students who are challenged to socialise into a team early in their education will better understand their beliefs and values surrounding interprofessional collaboration.