How will state medical boards handle cases involving disclosure and apology for medical errors?

Surveys were sent to 68 American state medical boards, including territories of the United States, inquiring how they handle—or will handle—cases involving disclosure and apology after medical errors. Surveys were not sent to specialty boards. Thirty-eight state medical boards ( n = 38, 56%) responded to the survey, with 31 completing the survey (46% completion rate) and seven boards ( n = 7) providing explanations for nonparticipation and other thoughts; 30 boards did not respond in any manner. Boards that completed the survey indicated that disclosure and apology and other positive post-event behavior by physicians are likely to be viewed favorably and disclosing physicians will not be easy targets for disciplinary measures, though boards also stressed they view each case on the merits and patient safety is their top priority. Recommendations are made for policy makers and other stakeholders.

Management of Big Data Projects

Big data is an emerging area of research that is of interest to various fields; however, studies in the literature and various sources claim that failure rates for big data projects are considerably high. There are different reasons for failure; varying from management processes to the use of wrong technologies. This study investigates how the project management framework proposed by Project Management Institute (PMI) can be effectively adapted to big data projects to reduce failure rates. The application of processes as mentioned in this study can help to eliminate the causes of failure in the early stages of the project; thus, increasing the successful completion rate of such projects.

Strengthening the coding skills of teachers in a low dropout Python MOOC

In this paper, we present a structured approach to developing an outreach program aimed at improving the coding abilities of pre- and in-service teachers. The paper presents the design and development decisions made using the ADDIE model. External evaluators assessed the material's quality, confirmed the estimated workload, and examined the material's relevance to the educational goals. Learners’ active participation was encouraged through multiple quizzes, and learners were assisted in their learning activities by means of practical examples. Based on the number of people who actually logged into the course, a completion rate of 70.84 percent is achieved. The paper presents and discusses the findings of an evaluation conducted with the assistance of experienced teachers and course participants.

運用品管手法改善藥師在職教育課程的辦理成效

<p>目的：改善在職教育課程的辦理成效，期能強化部內藥事人員專業技能以提升病人的照護品質。</p> <p>方法：本專案結合Kern課程規劃循環(Kern curriculum cycle)與品管手法PDCA的概念，由課堂的課後資料與 問卷進行現況分析與學習者需求調查，找出「課程參與度與完成度低」之主要因，並擬定對策。課程參與度之目標設定為每堂課平均出席人數過半達64位，課程完成率達85%。（課程完成之定義為限期內完成課後評值且分數高於80分，以及滿意度填寫）</p> <p>結果：課程內容與品質改善後，平均出席人數由56位增加到65位，目標達成率112.5%；課程完成率由83.2%增加到87.3%，目標達成率227.8%。</p> <p>結論：藉由優化課程內容與品質，改善在職教育課程的辦理成效，進一步再將特定發展的課程主題以帶狀系列或社群模式進行，能提高同仁自主學習意願、促進自我成長，亦能強化同仁專業技能，進而提升病人照護品質，且有助於部門內人才師資培育兼顧員工職涯發展，並預做準備將全人照護概念向下扎根於藥學實習生。</p> <p>&nbsp;</p><p>Objective: To improve the effectiveness of on-the-job education programs for strengthening the professional skills of the pharmacists in our department and further enhance the quality of patient care.</p> <p>Methods: This project integrated the Kern curriculum cycle and the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) concept of quality control. We used post-class evaluations and questionnaires to do a situation analysis and survey learners’ needs to identify the main reasons for low course participation and completion and to develop countermeasures to these problems. The course participation targets were an average attendance of 64 pharmacists per class and a course completion rate of 85%. Course completion was defined as completing both the postcourse evaluation (80 points to pass) and the satisfaction questionnaires by the stipulated deadline.</p> <p>Results: After we improved the content and quality of the courses, the average attendance increased from 56 to 65, and the target achievement rate was 112.5%. In addition, the course completion rate increased from 83.2% to 87.3%, and the target achievement rate was 227.8%.</p> <p>Conclusion: By optimizing the content and quality of the courses, improving the effectiveness of the on-the-job education programs, and developing courses on specific topics within a series or community model, we cultivated independent learning and self-growth among our pharmacists, strengthened their professional skills, and improved the quality of patient care. Moreover, talents and teachers were fostered while taking into account the career development of our pharmacists, and preparations were made to root the concept of holistic care down in pharmacy interns.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

Gamification Increases Completion Rates in Massive Open Online Courses

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) aim at unlimited participation and open access via the web. There are concerns about the actual value of such courses. This is predominantly due to higher dropout rates. According to studies, only 7-13% go on to complete these courses. The high dropout rate in MOOCs is a challenge for education providers. This paper aims to explore reasons for high dropout rates within MOOCs and how they can be minimized. With this in mind, two research questions have been set for this study: 1) Why do MOOC participants not complete their courses? 2) How can the course completion rate be increased? Implementation of the strategies investigated in this paper can increase completion rates in MOOCs. In conclusion, after analyzing the collected data, the final results have shown that gamification increased the completion rate of MOOCs.

Isoniazid preventive therapy in child household contacts of adults with active TB in Bamako, Mali

BACKGROUND and OBJECTIVE: Isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) is known to reduce the risk of developing active TB in about 59% in children aged 15 years. We assessed adherence, completion and adverse events among children who were household contacts of a newly diagnosed adult with smear-positive TB in Bamako, Mali.METHODS: Children aged <15 years living in the same house with an adult smear-positive index case were enrolled in the study in the Bamako Region after consent was obtained from the parent or legal guardian. Adherence was assessed based on the number of tablets consumed during 6 months.RESULTS: A total of 260 children aged <15 years were identified as household contacts of 207 adult patients with smear-positive TB during the study period. Among all child contacts, 130/260 (50.0%) were aged 0–4 years and were eligible for IPT; 128/130 (98.5%) were started on IPT and 83/128 (64.8%) completed with good adherence at the end of the 6 months, and without any significant adverse events.CONCLUSION: We successfully implemented IPT with good acceptance, but low completion rate. The Mali National TB Program and partners should expand this strategy to reach more children in Bamako and the whole country and create greater awareness in the population.

Manual Anesthesia Record Keeping at a Tertiary Care Center: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Intraoperative record form is one of the cardinal parts of anesthesia practices. Ideally, it should contain complete information about patients under anesthesia and intraoperative events. It serves as valuable information for subsequent patient management, research, or during medicolegal conditions. The objective of this study was to assess the practice and completeness of manual intraoperative anesthesia record keeping. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from May 1 to July 31, 2021, in the postoperative ward of Kathmandu Medical College, which is a multispecialty tertiary care center. Approval from the ethical committee of Kathmandu Medical College Teaching Hospital was obtained (Reference: 2603202105) before conducting the study. Convenience sampling was used. The data were entered in Microsoft Excel and statistical analysis was done using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20. Point estimate was done at 95% Confidence Interval and data present in numbers and percentages. We devised forty-two variables, which included demographics, personal identifiers, intraoperative events, anesthesia and airway management, intraoperative parameters, monitoring and medication. Results: The overall completion rate was 202 (52.59%) (47.6-57.57 at 95% Confidence Interval). Out of 42 variables, the completion rate of 14 variables was less than 50%. Among those were important parameters such as known allergies 94 (24.4%), Body mass index 50 (13%), intraoperative saturation of oxygen 104 (27%), intraoperative electrocardiogram recording 107 (27.8%), total fluid volume administered 45 (11.7%), patient status on transfer 84 (21.8%) had poor completion rate. Conclusions: Our intraoperative record form shows poor completion rate, which was similar to other studies. many important variables were missing and had incomplete data.

Applicability of colon capsule endoscopy as pan-endoscopy: From bowel preparation, transit, and rating times to completion rate and patient acceptance

Background and study aims Colon capsule endoscopy (CCE) has the potential to explore the entire gastrointestinal tract. The aim of this study was to assess the applicability of CCE as pan-endoscopy. Patients and methods Healthy participants received CCE with bowel preparation (bisacodyl, polyethylene electrolyte glycol (PEG) + ascorbic acid) and booster regimen (metoclopramide, oral sulfate solution (OSS)). For each segment of the gastrointestinal tract, the following quality parameters were assessed: cleanliness, transit times, reading times, patient acceptance and safety of the procedure. When all gastrointestinal segments had cleansing score good or excellent, cleanliness of the whole gastrointestinal tract was assessed as good. Participants’ expected and perceived burden was assessed by questionnaires and participants were asked to grade the procedure (scale 0–10). All serious adverse events (SAEs) were documented. Results A total of 451 CCE procedures were analyzed. A good cleansing score was achieved in the stomach in 69.6%, in the SB in 99.1 % and in the colon in 76.6 %. Cleanliness of the whole gastrointestinal tract was good in 52.8 % of the participants. CCE median transit time of the whole gastrointestinal tract was 583 minutes IQR 303–659). The capsule reached the descending colon in 94.7 %. Median reading time per procedure was 70 minutes (IQR 57–83). Participants graded the procedure with a 7.8. There were no procedure-related SAEs. Conclusions CCE as pan-endoscopy has shown to be a safe procedure with good patient acceptance. When cleanliness of all gastrointestinal segments per patient, completion rate and reading time will be improved, CCE can be applied as a good non-invasive alternative to evaluate the gastrointestinal tract.