The Development and Effectiveness of a Web-Based Emergency Management Educational Program for Long-Term Care Facility Interprofessional Practitioners

Young-Rim Choi,Sung-Ok Chang,Dai-Young Kwon

doi:10.3390/ijerph182312671

Young-Rim Choi, Sung-Ok Chang + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312671

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Abstract

Long-term care facility (LTCF) interprofessional practitioners who care for residents at high risk of emergencies due to old age, frailty, and complex diseases must be able to manage such emergencies collaboratively. A shared mental model (SMM) enhances performance toward a common goal by allowing effective collaboration through promoting the sharing of knowledge and skills among interprofessional team members. Therefore, this study developed a web-based educational program for LTCF interprofessional practitioners based on an SMM. We followed a network-based instructional system design that consists of analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation for developing the program. A total of 54 participants completed the educational program in four LTCFs in South Korea. A significant improvement was identified in communication knowledge, communication confidence, role recognition, transactive memory system, and team effectiveness in the experimental group. The results show that the program improved the emergency management process and reliability among interprofessional practitioners, positively impacting interprofessional collaboration and ensuring the safety of patients during emergencies in LTCFs.

Highlights

Interprofessional training aims to improve collaboration between the members of an interprofessional team so that emergencies such as falls, airway obstructions, and infections in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) can be managed in a successful way [1]
For a learner needs analyses, this study identified the status of emergency management in four LTCFs and the knowledge and skills required for emergency management education through interviews with 32 LTCF practitioners
Participants learned about the knowledge and skills necessary for emergency management, team interaction, and the role of team members according to the conceptual framework of the shared mental model (SMM)

Summary

Introduction

Interprofessional training aims to improve collaboration between the members of an interprofessional team so that emergencies such as falls, airway obstructions, and infections in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) can be managed in a successful way [1]. Collaboration between interprofessional team members has been shown to improve the quality of care provided to LTCF residents [2] and to have a positive effect on patient safety and health outcomes by reducing the frequency of adverse events [3]. A systematized process, such as the sharing of knowledge, skills, roles, and goals that helps convert individual knowledge into team knowledge, is needed to improve collaboration [5]. To extend knowledge from the individual level to the team level, CannonBowers et al [5] proposed the shared mental model (SMM). The SMM allows team members to recognize and understand each other’s different areas of knowledge and roles, as well as to predict other team members’ behaviors, enabling effective collaboration [6]

Results

Discussion

Conclusion