Academic-practice Partnership Research Articles

Academic-practice partnerships to promote evidence-based practice in long-term care: Oral hygiene care practices as an exemplar

Learning in practice disciplines suffers when gaps exist between classroom instruction and students' observations of routine clinical practices.(1) Academic institutions, therefore, have a strong interest in fostering the rapid and effective translation of evidence-based care techniques into routine practice. Long-term care (LTC) practice sites are particularly vulnerable to gaps between classroom teaching and how daily care is implemented, owing to the recent rapid advances in the scientific bases of care for frail older adults, the relative isolation of most LTC sites from academic settings,(2) and the relatively small number of registered nurses (RNs) available in LTC settings who can facilitate translation of research-based practices into care.(3) The aim of this project was to demonstrate the feasibility and value of an academic practice partnership to implement evidence-based approaches to solving resident care problems in LTC, as many scientifically proven practices hold promise for improving resident outcomes yet adoption is often slow.(4) We developed and implemented a clinical practice improvement process, based on diffusion of innovations theory and research,(5-8) to serve as a new model of academic-practice collaboration between a university school of nursing, LTC facility management and direct-care staff, as a means of developing high quality clinical sites for student rotations. The goal was to implement a sustainable evidence-based oral care program as an exemplar of how scientific evidence can be translated into LTC practice. This project focused on oral hygiene because the staff was dissatisfied with their existing resident oral care program, and an evidence-base for oral care in LTC existed that had not yet been incorporated into care routines. This article describes a systematic, replicable process for linking advanced practice registered nurse expertise with staff insights about care systems to reduce the gap between teaching and practice in long-term care settings. Our experience demonstrates that translation of research on oral care practices into LTC practice through academic-practice partnerships is feasible, is associated with positive resident outcomes, and illustrates a process that has broader applicability to other common problems in LTC, where incomplete implementation of an extant research base for practice may inhibit student learning.

A Model Academic-Practice Partnership

A Model Academic-Practice Partnership

Academic-Practice Partnerships in Practice Research

Summary Academic-practice partnerships in practice research support health social workers in engaging in research that is embedded within their practice. This shift in culture enables social workers to join in a health service discourse that is increasingly data-driven and focused on effective practice and demonstrated quality of care for patients. The mentoring model is described as enabling practitioners to superimpose research skills onto existing practice skills. An academic-practice research collaboration can reduce the distance between research and practice, contribute to a body of knowledge for health social work and promote health social workers as “research focused practitioners.”

Enhancing Academic Pharmacy's Bench Strength

Change is a constant in most every aspect of society today, and academia is not immune to this. Nor is the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP). In fact, in so many ways, AACP is a microcosm of its members. New demands and expectations require new capabilities, programs, and services. Not surprisingly, a revised accreditation standard represents a major stimulus for AACP to examine how our internal capabilities match the needs of AACP members, both institutionally and individually. Three key areas merit attention given their increased emphasis in Standards 2007. Those are faculty enrichment programs, experiential education, and assessment activities. AACP has taken steps to build bench strength in each area with new staffing and programs. Because of the significance and timeliness, they merit explicit description and communication with members via this Viewpoint. After 16 years of dedicated service in academic affairs at AACP, Susan Meyer sought a career change to rejoin her colleagues in academia. As Associate Dean for Education at the University of Pittsburgh, Susan claims she will now have the chance to see how many of the programs she built work in “the real world”! Change is our only constant. AACP had determined in advance of Susan's decision to leave the staff that the needs of members warranted adding staff in academic affairs. Our search yielded a strong response and, as luck would have it, 2 very talented candidates with complimentary knowledge and experience rose to the surface. George MacKinnon joined the staff as Vice President of Academic Affairs on May 15, 2006. Cecilia Plaza joins effective July 1, as Director of Academic Affairs and Assessment. Together with key staff members Ken Miller, Jennifer Patton, and Libby Ross, these dedicated individuals comprise the core academic team at AACP. The recruitment, retention and, in George's words, enrichment of our faculty resource in pharmacy is “job #1” for AACP. This will require more aggressive outreach about academic careers to professional and graduate students, residents, practitioners, and scientists, including those not familiar with academic pharmacy. It argues for more purposeful programming for department chairs and other future academic leaders, as well as attention to the growing numbers of new faculty members within the academic community at both new and expanding programs. Retention also requires that the academy grapple with questions about expectations for faculty members as content experts, excellent teachers, and strong researchers. AACP has the beginnings of program offerings touching on each of these, but they must grow and become stronger to keep pace with the needs of members. Expect to hear more about the Curricular Resource Center, Education Scholar, and clinical scientist training in the near future. The Academic Practice Partnership Initiative is now over a year old and has yielded the seeds for some very positive change in experiential education. Already we hear from our practice partners (eg, chain corporations) that they have used resources compiled and accessible in the APPI “library” of preceptor materials to better equip their pharmacists to serve as our preceptors. A beta test of criteria to define and celebrate exemplary learning sites is nearing completion. We have reached out through the JCPP to all our national practice association partners to stimulate their programming and support for quality experiential education as well. Arlene Flynn continues her work leading this effort and will be enabled with the hands-on experience George MacKinnon brings from his service as both a department chair and director of experiential education. Assessment is an area all colleges and schools have been seriously working to advance for many years. The ability to evaluate students, faculty members, curriculum, and programs is essential to our individual and collective success. That said, our true experts in the assessment arena are still small in number and often “home grown.” AACP remains committed to work with faculty members as content experts in the development and measurement of assessment programs that will assist all members, while reaching out to other disciplines in a collaborative manner. Adding Cecilia Plaza to the AACP staff represents a major leap forward in our ability and capacity to assist schools with their assessment efforts. As a non-traditional pharmacy administration graduate student, Cecilia took substantial coursework in educational theory and research methods. Her dissertation modeled the use of assessment data for curricular evaluation and reform. She will join forces with Jennifer Patton, the Assessment Learning Community, and the Institutional Research Advisory Committee to maximize the usefulness of both current and future sources of data for use in assessment activities that will benefit each member school. Matching our programs and staff resources to the most compelling needs of our members is the simple success equation AACP has used for over 105 years. In a constantly changing world, it is reassuring to know that at least one thing never changes.

The Practice-Scholar Program: An Academic-Practice Partnership to Promote the Scholarship of “Best Practices”

The Practice-Scholar Program: An Academic-Practice Partnership to Promote the Scholarship of “Best Practices”

Nevada's Academic-Practice Collaboration: Public Health Preparedness Possibilities outside an Academic Center

The Nevada State Health Division developed a local academic-practice partnership with the University of Nevada Reno's Master of Public Health Program to assess the bioterrorism risk communication, information, response, and training needs of professional and public stakeholder groups throughout Nevada. Between October 16, 2002, and April 13, 2004, 22 needs assessment focus groups and 125 key informant interviews were conducted to gather information on the diverse needs of the stakeholders. The themes that emerged from these activities included the need for effective pre-event education and training; a coordinated and responsive public health preparedness infrastructure; honest, accurate, and timely communication in the event of a bioterrorism situation; and appropriate information dissemination methods and technology. The data collected through this needs assessment gave the Nevada State Health Division vital information to plan public health preparedness initiatives. The establishment of local academic-practice partnerships for states without a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded Academic Center for Public Health Preparedness is an effective way for health departments to develop their public health preparedness infrastructure while simultaneously training the future public health workforce.

Education and Practice Collaborations: A Pilot Case Study Between a University Faculty and County Jail Practitioners

SUMMARYThe purpose of this case study is to present a partnership between faculty and practitioners that initiated a systematic evaluation data collection approach to support program development and study practice in a newly developing occupational therapy program. The Department of Occupational Therapy at Duquesne University collaborated with Goodwill Industries of Pittsburgh to introduce occupational therapy as part of a grant-supported community re-integration program at the Allegheny County Jail. In developing the program, the absence of published data regarding the occupational needs among jail inmates was evident.This paper is presented as a case study to demonstrate that faculty-practitioner collaborations can promote the implementation of a viable, systematic evaluation process when implemented as soon as possible in the practice setting. The community-university partnership ensured that a wide variety of knowledge and resource applied to the development of an evaluation process that generated relevant data for each of the partners. The intent of providing systematic evidence for practice can enhance the intervention process and provide valuable professional information.This paper also presents pilot descriptive results from the Occupational Self Assessment (2002) from the initial 67 (61 men & 6 women) inmates in the local Allegheny County Jail Community regarding perceptions of their own occupational competence and of the impact of their environment on their overall occupational adaptation. Using OSA responses, a difference score between reported occupational competence in an activity (rated low) and the correlated importance of the occupation (rated high), the top eight occupational performance areas of concern were identified for the total group, men only and women only. Caution in using the woman data due to the small n is advised. The top eight occupational performance areas of concern for this population included managing my finances, handling my responsibilities, working towards my goals, accomplishing what I set out to do, a place to live and take care of myself, basic things I need to live and take care of myself, things I need to be productive, and a place where I can be productive. Notably, four of these eight items captured the inmates' perceptions of the impact of the environment on their occupational adaptation. This study demonstrates the viability of the academic-practice partnership to support the scholarship of practice and provide a model to embed evidence-gathering through systematic evaluation processes.

Academic Centers for Public Health Preparedness: A Giant Step for Practice in Schools of Public Health

(Authors' note: This article was originally written and submitted in April 2004. Since then, substantial changes have been made to the Academic Centers for Public Health Preparedness [ACPHP] program. The 23 ACPHP have united with earmarked specialty centers located in schools of medicine, dentistry, and veterinary medicine to become a network of 40 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] Centers for Public Health Preparedness [CPHP]. The Association of Schools of Public Health [ASPH] continues to play a vital role in coordinating network activities. To learn more about the CPHP network's current activities, visit ASPH's website at http://www.asph.org.) Before the 1990s, it was difficult to find tangible evidence of a serious focus on public health practice in most of the U.S. schools of public health. In the years since, national and public health community events have affected changes to refocus the schools of public health to start dealing seriously with the issues of training, service, and research in public health practice. Established in 2000 to improve the safety of our communities, the Academic Centers for Public Health Preparedness (ACPHP) have not only made significant contributions to workforce readiness, but have advanced academic-practice partnerships. The Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH), the coordinating body of the ACPHP network, undertook a qualitative evaluation of the program. Results demonstrated that the ACPHP were developing valuable expertise in preparedness issues, assessing the training needs of their partners, and testing the effectiveness of the trainings using exercises and drills. During February and March 2004, 21 ACPHP located at 23 schools of public health, along with their practice partners, participated in a qualitative Peer Review and Practice Evaluation (also called reverse site visits) hosted by ASPH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. This article provides background on the historical context of the establishment of the ACPHP, then presents themes learned from the ACPHP evaluation process and offers commentary on how a program focused on increasing public health workers' ability to respond to terrorist threats also significantly advanced academic-practice partnerships, which have been struggling for years.

The Practice-Scholar Program: An Academic-Practice Partnership to Promote the Scholarship of “Best Practices”

SUMMARYFaculty-practitioner partnerships that address mutually established, practice-relevant priorities have great potential to bridge academy and practice. Each partner has a different purpose or mission but together embracing mutually beneficial opportunities through sustainable partnerships, exponentially increases the outcomes that could result.The purpose of this paper is to report the evolution of a new program, called the Practice-Scholar Program at Duquesne University. The goal was to develop new partnerships between practice and our Department to support mutual interests in teaching, research and service focusing on the scholarship of occupational therapy ‘best practices’ in a variety of settings. These 'best practice' sites are to develop model programs in occupational therapy stressing occupation-based practice, application of evidence in clinical decision-making and embed scholarship activities into their every day practice. The selection, development and sustenance of our Practice-Scholar program and our first four partnership sites are described in this paper. Our Practice-Scholars sites have been at a collaborative speech-language/occupational therapy pediatric clinic, and at three community sites: three day-care sites in a marginalized underserved community; a homeless shelter for women; and the county jail.This paper describes how faculty have woven the Practice-Scholar program into our teaching, research and service responsibilities while helping our Practice-Scholars develop ‘best practices.’ Faculty, practitioner, and students benefits are described. Both the funding and outcomes from the Practice-Scholar program will be presented. Finally, new developments, modifications and challenges in sustaining these Practice Scholar partnerships and scholarship of practice activities are discussed.

Building Academic–Practice Partnerships

The Center for Public Health Preparedness at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health is part of a national network of academic centers established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to strengthen links between public health practice and academe, especially for public health workforce development. Since its inception in Fall 2000, the Center has been working in partnership with the New York City Department of Health & Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) on planning and competency-based training in emergency preparedness (including bioterrorism and infectious diseases) and evaluation. Initial programs with DOHMH included development of a 3-hour orientation to basic emergency preparedness for their workforce. In the wake of 9/11 and the anthrax events, Center members gave over two dozen presentations at community forums, seminars, and clinical rounds, and over 100 press interviews, provided lay language information through community forum presentations and the School's Web site, and developed a database of volunteers for surge capacity. Subsequent programs include bioterrorism response training for clinicians and emergency medical services personnel, incident command for public health, and a study of evacuation from the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Developing knowledge for practice: Working through "trench--bench" partnerships

Social work has long struggled with the challenge of ensuring that products of its research arm are useful to, and used by, its practice arm. Articles in this issue exemplify one of the most promising means to this important end: conducting research about and in partnership with practice. In many areas of biological and social sciences and in medicine, knowledge development has traditionally developed from to trench. The academic setting has been the where hypotheses and research questions are formulated, rooted (ideally) in theory and prior published research. Practice or policy has been the to which knowledge dissemination is directed through last, but all-too-often neglected, steps in the research process. The sufficiency of this approach for social work is challenged by persistent evidence that research findings have very little uptake by practice, and that new practices are rarely sustained in agency settings after an intervention trial or prevention program ends. If the production of useful research knowledge is our goal, as I think most readers would agree, we need to conduct our research differently. Bench to will not suffice; rather we need bench-trench partnerships, and may, in fact, need to more often work trench, to bench, and back to trench. Academic-practice partnerships need to be cultivated, respected, and nurtured from the outset of the research process. Both and trench give rise to research questions. We are familiar with the bench-generated research questions--those that arise from gaps in prior knowledge and represent the next logical step in an incremental progression of knowledge. With regard to knowledge for practice, this may be reflected in the progression of epidemiological research giving rise to clinical epidemiological studies, which then inform research (Proctor, 2003), which in turn informs the testing of interventions' generalizability to new settings and populations. Social work needs this kind of careful, incremental knowledge development, and we need a strong cadre of careful and committed researchers. Yet as articles in this issue demonstrate, practice-research, or bench-trench, partnerships can help generate research questions that have high priority to agencies. In the lead article, Harris and Franklin address the challenge of helping adolescent Hispanic mothers address the problems associated with their high pregnancy rates that jeopardize their educational success. Their study reflects the respective and mutual contributions of research and practice expertise to the conception, conduct, and completion of this important study. The study methodology reflects many strengths of a bench perspective, including use of a randomized experimental design, standardized measures, treatment manual, and follow-up assessment of effects. Yet, the benefits of a trench-bench partnership are equally apparent: The lead author brought 25 years of experience in family practice to implementing and monitoring the fidelity of the intervention; cultural values and norms informed the intervention and its delivery; and school administrators were involved in selecting the specific school sites for the study. Bench-trench partnership is also apparent in Baker and colleagues' study of recidivism at a shelter for run-away adolescents. In this intervention-informative research, the study team sought to gain information that could subsequently shape the development of interventions to reduce recidivism. Following Rothman's (1989) intervention-research model, researchers worked closely with agency staff in formulating the study questions and shaping the research design. Agency staff wondered if youths' histories of running away affected recidivism; thus practice observations helped to determine an independent variable for examination through the research. Existing administrative data, including that available from the agency's intake form, were used to measure some variables, thereby reducing some of the study's potential burden on agency staff. …

Professional Accountability for Social Work Practice and Social Work in Health Services: An Academic Practice Partnership

Professional Accountability for Social Work Practice and Social Work in Health Services: An Academic Practice Partnership

Brief Review

Brief Review Get access Social Work in Health Services: An Academic Practice Partnership. Edited by Caroff Phyllis and Mailick Mildred, with the assistance of Grace Fields. New York: Prodist, 1980, 205 pp. $15.95. Claudia J. Coulton Claudia J. Coulton School of Applied Social Sciences Case Western Reserve UniversityCleveland, Ohio Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Health & Social Work, Volume 6, Issue 1, February 1981, Pages 91–92, https://doi.org/10.1093/hsw/6.1.91 Published: 01 February 1981

Social Work in Health Services: An Academic Practice Partnership

Social Work in Health Services: An Academic Practice Partnership