scholarly journals Looking for a bright side: Tales from a recreational therapy virtual service-learning project during a pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 739-739
Author(s):  
Jennifer Taylor ◽  
Alyssa Doughty

Abstract The everchanging policies and inability to utilize university students due to COVID-19 impacted both residents living in long-term care as well as the next generation of students pursuing careers in the field. University Wisconsin-La Crosse (UWL) faculty strategized solutions as restrictions threatened to impact hands-on opportunities for students. Was there a safe and effective solution to offer residents evidence-based programming while also providing students with vital field experience? Simply stated, the answer was yes. Thus, the UWL Happiness Project was born. This session will outline the UWL Happiness Project, a ten-week, telehealth program implemented between a skilled nursing facility in rural Wisconsin and the UWL Therapeutic Recreation Program, an AGHE Program of Merit for Health Professions designated program. The evidence-based curriculum was developed by an emerging UWL graduate student scholar with faculty mentorship. The innovative curriculum focuses on increasing feelings of happiness using PERMA, a theoretical model grounded in positive psychology. During virtual sessions, older adult residents (ages 65-85) and students built connection while working through weekly focus areas (e.g. vitality, mindfulness, friendship). An overview of AGHE competencies addressed within the project, online course demonstration, and assignment development will be discussed along with information about how these connections fostered an opportunity for students to see aging from a different perspective. This is the first time we are presenting results from the newly developed program. In this, we look forward to sharing student measurements and outcomes, as well as lessons learned during this meaningful, stimulating, and insightful educational session.

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (11) ◽  
pp. e718-e725 ◽  
Author(s):  
Massimo Pacilli ◽  
Janna L Kerins ◽  
Whitney J Clegg ◽  
Kelly A Walblay ◽  
Hira Adil ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Since the identification of the first 2 Candida auris cases in Chicago, Illinois, in 2016, ongoing spread has been documented in the Chicago area. We describe C. auris emergence in high-acuity, long-term healthcare facilities and present a case study of public health response to C. auris and carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) at one ventilator-capable skilled nursing facility (vSNF-A). Methods We performed point prevalence surveys (PPSs) to identify patients colonized with C. auris and infection-control (IC) assessments and provided ongoing support for IC improvements in Illinois acute- and long-term care facilities during August 2016–December 2018. During 2018, we initiated a focused effort at vSNF-A and conducted 7 C. auris PPSs; during 4 PPSs, we also performed CPO screening and environmental sampling. Results During August 2016–December 2018 in Illinois, 490 individuals were found to be colonized or infected with C. auris. PPSs identified the highest prevalence of C. auris colonization in vSNF settings (prevalence, 23–71%). IC assessments in multiple vSNFs identified common challenges in core IC practices. Repeat PPSs at vSNF-A in 2018 identified increasing C. auris prevalence from 43% to 71%. Most residents screened during multiple PPSs remained persistently colonized with C. auris. Among 191 environmental samples collected, 39% were positive for C. auris, including samples from bedrails, windowsills, and shared patient-care items. Conclusions High burden in vSNFs along with persistent colonization of residents and environmental contamination point to the need for prioritizing IC interventions to control the spread of C. auris and CPOs.


2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis R. Myers ◽  
Rob Rogers ◽  
Harold H. LeCrone ◽  
Katherine Kelley ◽  
Joel H. Scott

Career resilience provided a frame for understanding how Licensed Nursing Facility Administrators (LNFAs) sustain role performance and even thrive in stressful skilled nursing facility work environments. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of in-depth interviews with18 LNFAs, averaging 24 years of experience were conducted by a five-member research team. Analysis was informed by evidence-based frameworks for career resilience in the health professions as well as the National Association of Long-Term Care Administrator Boards’ (NAB) five domains of competent administrative practice. Findings included six sources of work stressors and six sources of professional satisfaction. Also, participants identified seven strategic principles and 10 administrative practices for addressing major sources of stress. Recommendations are provided for research and evidence-based application of the career resilience perspective to LNFA practice aimed at reducing role abandonment and energizing the delivery of the quality of care that each resident deserves.


2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 479-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renée Shield ◽  
Ulrika Winblad ◽  
John McHugh ◽  
Emily Gadbois ◽  
Denise Tyler

Objective: We explored post–Affordable Care Act hospital and skilled nursing facility (SNF) perspectives in discharge and admission practices. Method: Interviews were conducted with 138 administrative personnel in 16 hospitals and 25 SNFs in eight U.S. markets and qualitatively analyzed. Results: Hospitals may use prior referral rates and patients’ geographic proximity to SNFs to guide discharges. SNFs with higher hospital referral rates often use licensed nurses to screen patients to admit more preferred patients. While SNFs with lower hospital referral rates use marketing strategies to increase admissions, these patients are often less preferred due to lower reimbursement or complex care needs. Conclusion: An unintended consequence of increased hospital-SNF integration may be greater disparity. SNFs with high hospital referral rates may admit well-reimbursed or less medically complex patients than SNFs with lower referral rates. Without policy remediation, SNFs with lower referral rates may thus care for more medically complex long-term care patients.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 563-568
Author(s):  
Stephen C. Morris ◽  
Aaron T. Resnick ◽  
Susan A. England ◽  
Susan A. Stern ◽  
Steven H. Mitchell

Author(s):  
Stephanie Hovick ◽  
Ingrid Provident

Evidence-based practice enables rehabilitation therapists to provide the best quality of care and outcomes for patients. However, rehabilitation therapists are often not confident in using evidence in many settings. Purpose. The objective of this evidence-based practice project was to determine if educational small group sessions enhanced occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, and a speech and language pathologist’s confidence in utilizing and applying evidence. Method. Eleven rehabilitation therapists of multiple disciplines (occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, and a speech and language pathologist) from a skilled nursing facility participated in six educational sessions designed to increase evidence-based practice. A pre- and post-test utilizing the Evidence-Based Practice Profile Questionnaire (EBPPQ), measured change in therapists’confidence regarding evidence-based practice. Results. Results on the Evidence-Based Practice Profile Questionnaire concluded that 7 of 11 rehabilitation therapists reported an increase in confidence levels. Conclusion. Educational small group sessions can be an effective method to assist rehabilitation therapists in developing this confidence. KEYWORDS: Evidence-based practice, confidence levels, rehabilitation therapists, educational sessions, skilled nursing facility


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S769-S770
Author(s):  
Daniel Stadler

Abstract Reducing Avoidable Facility Transfers (RAFT) is a Dartmouth-developed program that identifies and honors “what matters most” to patients residing in skilled nursing facilities in a value-based, sustainable way. RAFT aims to reduce avoidable facility transfers of older adults from long-term care and post-acute care facilities to emergency departments (ED). Key components of RAFT presently include (1) systematically eliciting goals of care for all skilled nursing facility residents, (2) translating these goals into orders using the Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment form, (3) documenting patient wishes about hospitalization, and (4) ensuring that these wishes inform decision-making during acute crises. Data from a pilot program, begun in 2016 with three rural skilled nursing facilities in collaboration with the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center geriatric practice, showed a 35% reduction in monthly ED transfers, a 30.5% reduction in monthly hospitalizations, and a 50.7% reduction in monthly ED and hospitalization-related charges.


2000 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter A. Selwyn ◽  
Joseph L. Goulet ◽  
Susan Molde ◽  
Janet Constantino ◽  
Kristopher P. Fennie ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Theresa Watts ◽  
Marilyn Tucker ◽  
Chelsey Gray ◽  
Kim Lee ◽  
Kaitlyn Modina ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (13) ◽  
pp. 377-381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Kimball ◽  
Kelly M. Hatfield ◽  
Melissa Arons ◽  
Allison James ◽  
Joanne Taylor ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-14
Author(s):  
Timothy J. Legg, PhD, CNHA, GNP-BC, FACHCA ◽  
Sharon A. Nazarchuk, PhD, MHA, RN ◽  
Deborah Adelman, PhD, RN, CNS

The literature reports no studies that sought to determine which professional group (certified therapeutic recreation therapist versus certified activity director) achieves fewer survey deficiencies in the skilled nursing facility. This article will examine the scant and dated literature that is available to demonstrate which of these activity professionals has superior outcomes specific to the OBRA ’87 requirements. The article concludes with an articulation of the need for the discipline of recreation therapy to involve itself in outcomes research specific to which of the two disciplines better achieves the objectives of OBRA ’87.


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