Validation of the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skill in Brasil

SUMMARY BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to perform a cross-cultural adaptation of the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skill (OSATS) tool into Brazilian Portuguese and to determine its reproducibility and validity in Brasil. METHODS A Brazilian Portuguese version of OSATS was created through a process of translation, back-translation, expert panel evaluation, pilot testing, and then its validation. For the construct and the concurrent validities, twelve participants were divided into a group of six experts and six novices, who had to perform tasks on a simulation model using human placentas. Each participant was filmed, and two blinded raters would then evaluate their performance using the traditional subjective method and then the Brazilian Portuguese version of OSATS. RESULTS The Brazilian Portuguese version of OSATS had the face, content, construct, and concurrent validities achieved. The average experts’ score and standard deviations were 34 and 0.894, respectively, for Judge 1 and 34.33 and 0.816 for Judge 2. In the case of novices, it was 13.33 and 2.388 for Judge 1 and 13.33 and 3.204 for Judge 2. The concordance between the judges was evident, with the Correlation Coefficient (Pearson) of 0.9944 with CI 95% between 0.9797 and 0.9985, with p < 10-10, evidencing the excellent reproducibility of the instrument. CONCLUSION This preliminary study suggests that the Brazilian Portuguese version of OSATS can reliably and validly assess surgical skills in Brasil.

CSF Autoantibody Panel Test Utilization in Patients Presenting With Neurologic Alterations: A 3-Year Retrospective Study

Introduction When patients present with a range of neurological symptoms, it can be difficult to identify the cause. CSF evaluation of patients who present with a subacute neurological disorder of undetermined etiology is very helpful, especially in patients with known risk factors for autoimmune neurologic disease or cancer. The goal of this study was to review the results of CSF autoantibody panels ordered over the last 3 years and determine the percentage of panels that were positive. Methods Results of CSF autoantibody panels ordered over the last 3 years were reviewed and the percentage of samples that tested positive and the most common autoantibody was calculated. Conclusion At our institution, pathology residents review orders for CSF autoantibody panel evaluation and approve testing based on the clinical history and neurologic evaluation in order to prevent inappropriate test utilization. Of the 192 CSF evaluations ordered between 2015 and 2018 (5 dementia, 72 encephalopathy, and 115 paraneoplastic CSF-autoimmune evaluation), 19.8% of the tests were positive. The most common autoantibodies detected were the NMDA (4.68%) and VGKC (4.68%) receptors.

Developing an Appreciative Management Scale (AMS 1.0)

In working life, ageing and retiring staff and managers are being replaced by younger generations which come from different working life cultures. This may give rise to different management expectations. As a result, this creates a need to assess how the concept of appreciative management is implemented in health care. The aim was to develop a valid and reliable instrument to assess appreciative management. A multi-phase, mixed-method and psychometric evaluation of the Appreciative Management Scale (AMS) was conducted. A concept analysis and systematic literature review were carried out. The instrument’s development employed a two-phase Delphi study approach including essays, survey iteration rounds and expert panel evaluation. The instrument was pre-tested and tested empirically in a survey completed by staff respondents and managers. AMS 1.0 has 83 items that are categorised into Systematic Management, Equality, Appreciation of Know-How, and the Promotion of Wellbeing at Work. The instrument was found to be valid and reliable. The AMS 1.0 scale needs to be tested internationally in order to conduct evaluative surveys of appreciative management in other countries. By using the AMS 1.0 instrument to assess managers’ management practices, managers receive valuable feedback on their own management skills and also the skills of workers.