Advisory Program Research Articles

Reclaiming advisory: Advocacy in action

Exemplary middle schools have a variety of programs that support students’ needs and help them adjust socially and emotionally; advisory programs can be one structure to effectively provide some of this support. This article shares the story of how a group of middle level teachers and teacher leaders within a culturally diverse school reclaimed advisory to address the challenges around school safety and belonging. Specifically, topics dealing with the design of this culturally responsive advisory program, called Na Kuleana, the development of the program from inception to implementation, implementation strategies to support faculty support, and the strengths and challenges that were faced during the development and implementation of this program are also shared.

Urban anglers' adherence to fish consumption advisories in the Great Lakes region

Abstract Urban anglers are considered a group at high risk of being exposed to contaminants from fish consumption. Past studies of urban anglers' fish consumption, however, have had significant limitations making it difficult to generalize their findings broadly and to assess the degree to which urban anglers are complying with advisory recommendations. We used a diary method to collect detailed information on fish consumption in three cities in the Great Lakes region for a 4-month period during the summer of 2014. We assessed how much fish anglers were consuming, whether they were complying with fish consumption advisories, and how fish consumption and advisory compliance varied for different demographic groups and in different locations. We estimated a mean of 1.12 meals/week of fish and 25.1–26.8 g/day of fish, and the amount of fish consumed varied by no > 25% from one site to another. Advisory exceedance was more variable, however, ranging from 7–10% to 27–40% in our three study sites. Fish consumption increased with age, education, and income, and was higher for non-whites than for whites. Advisory exceedance was higher for women, non-whites, and older anglers. At each site, the types of fish that contributed the most to advisory exceedance varied, which points to the benefits of community-specific (and resource-intensive) fish consumption advisories. Our findings could help fish consumption advisory programs tailor their advice to vulnerable populations and particular locations.

Improving student-perceived benefit of academic advising within education of occupational and physical therapy in the United States: a quality improvement initiative.

Academic advising is a key role for faculty in the educational process of health professionals; however, the best practice of effective academic advising for occupational and physical therapy students has not been identified in the current literature. The purpose of this quality improvement initiative was to assess and improve the faculty/student advisor/advisee process within occupational and physical therapy programs within a school of allied health professions in the United States in 2015. A quality improvement initiative utilizing quantitative and qualitative information was gathered via survey focused on the assessment and improvement of an advisor/advisee process. The overall initiative utilized an adaptive iterative design incorporating the plan-do-study-act model which included a three-step process over a one year time frame utilizing 2 cohorts, the first with 80 students and the second with 88 students. Baseline data were gathered prior to initiating the new process. A pilot was conducted and assessed during the first semester of the occupational and physical therapy programs. Final information was gathered after one full academic year with final comparisons made to baseline. Defining an effective advisory program with an established framework led to improved awareness and participation by students and faculty. Early initiation of the process combined with increased frequency of interaction led to improved student satisfaction. Based on student perceptions, programmatic policies were initiated to promote advisory meetings early and often to establish a positive relationship. The policies focus on academic advising as one of proactivity in which the advisor serves as a portal which the student may access leading to a more successful academic experience.

Really effective (for 15% of the men): Lessons in understanding and addressing user needs in climate services from Mali

The design of effective climate services requires the identification of a problem that might be addressed through the provision of weather and climate information, and the design and delivery of actionable information to a set of appropriate users. The utility of weather and climate information for a given user is shaped not only by exposure to particular weather, climate, and market shocks and stresses, but also the sensitivity of that user’s livelihoods to particular shocks and stresses and whether or not their adaptive capacity includes the ability to use such information. Therefore, effective climate services are very place-, time-, and vulnerability-specific, and required careful social scientific investigation into user needs as part of the design process. Such investigation is also critical to the monitoring and evaluation of such projects, for they may lose their efficacy when applied to challenges or user communities other than those for which they were designed. This article uses the example of Mali’s agrometeorological advisory program to illustrate these points. This program, designed during a severe drought in the late 1970s and early 1980s, sought to address acute food insecurity by boosting food availability through yield increases. This design achieved its goals by targeting the users (senior men who owned their own agricultural equipment) who were most able to make rapid changes to the production of staple grains. It is only in the contemporary context of resilience programming and an increasing concern for climate change adaptation that the relatively small, highly gendered set of users able to engage with this climate service became a lens through which to view this program as a failure. The contemporary challenge for the program, and indeed any climate service aimed at addressing vulnerabilities produced by a variable, changing climate, lies in how it might remain relevant as our understanding of the dynamics of food security have shifted away from a focus on food availability, the weather- and climate-related stresses most important to agrarian populations shift with the changing climate, and our concerns for resilience demand that this program reach a much wider set of users and serve a broader set of needs than initially imagined.

Urban anglers in the Great Lakes region: Fish consumption patterns, influences, and responses to advisory messages

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and many state advisory programs consider urban anglers at high risk of being exposed to contaminants through fish consumption because the urban poor may be dependent on fish they catch for food and lack access to non-contaminated fishing sites. Past research has supported this characterization of urban anglers, but most studies have been site-specific and limited to subsets of urban anglers. We used a mail survey and focus groups to (a) explore how urban anglers living in the Great Lakes region of the United States differed from rural and suburban anglers and (b) characterize their fishing patterns, fish consumption, factors influencing their fish consumption, and response to fish consumption advisory messages. Although we detected some differences between licensed urban, suburban, and rural anglers, their magnitude was not striking. Lower income urban anglers tended to consume less purchased and sport-caught fish than higher income urban anglers and were not at high risk as a group. Nevertheless, focus group data suggested there may be subpopulations of urban anglers, particularly from immigrant populations, that consume higher amounts of potentially contaminated fish. Although urban anglers in general may not require a special approach for communicating fish consumption advice, subpopulations within this group may be best targeted by using community-based programs to communicate fish consumption advice.

Evaluating an Advisor Program for Psychiatry Residents.

A formal residency advisory program was instituted in 2010 to assist psychiatry residents in achieving academic and personal goals and to help identify additional mentors. In this project the authors sought to evaluate and improve resident and faculty satisfaction with the residency advisory program. At the end of the 2013-2014 academic period, residents completed an anonymous survey to determine baseline satisfaction with the residency advisory program. A series of interventions were then implemented including the addition of a resident liaison to the program, formal recognition of faculty advisors, and email reminders regarding regular residency advisory meetings. Eight months later a follow-up survey was distributed to assess the impact of the interventions on resident and faculty satisfaction with the residency advisory program and mentoring within the residency program. There were notable improvements in overall satisfaction with a 58% increase (p<0.05) in residents meeting with their advisors. After the intervention, residents were more likely to seek their resident advisor for help in facilitating relationships with potential career mentors (28% vs 72%, OR=6.64, 95% CI =1.83-24.08). Although 87% of all residents reported having mentors outside of the formal residency advisory program, approximately half of those who are in their first year post medical school (PGY1s) reported having no mentors outside of the residency advisory program (notably all women). Resident advisory programs benefit from continuous evaluation and quality improvement with enhanced structure, including a senior resident position, leading to improved satisfaction. Residency advisory programs may be particularly useful in helping to facilitate relationships with other mentors, which may be particularly important for women early in their training.

Exploring how voluntary sports clubs implement external advisory inputs

ABSTRACTGiven a shortage of volunteers, voluntary sports clubs (VSCs) are facing an increasing demand for external advisory programs to help effectively deal with challenges, but this help does not always lead to successful problem-solving. Therefore, this paper analyzes the factors that are critical for the implementation of external advisory programs. Three critical interfaces were theoretically defined – (1) receiving and processing, (2) adopting and transferring, (3) structural embedding – that determine the process of implementation of advisory inputs. Using a case-study design, semi-structured interviews were conducted according to the framework with team leaders from 10 Swiss football clubs participating in their federation’s advisory program to improve the clubs’ volunteer management. The result shows that different factors could hinder or promote implementation included receiving and processing the advisory inputs, reflecting and adapting, and assessing its structural embeddedness within the club. The findings provide valuable information about critical factors for implementation of advisory programs that are relevant for VSCs to succeed as well as for the federations to develop sustainable advisory concepts for their clubs.

On the Road to Developing a Learning Advisory Program (LAP)

Learning Advisory Program (LAP) was launched at Yıldırım Beyazıt University School of Foreign Languages in the 2015-2016 academic year. The LAP, under the guidance of the instructors and advisors at the Independent Learning Centre (ILC), was planned to be used initially with students of a specific profile, composed of low-achieving, unmotivated students – the so-called ‘repeat’ students. In our case, ‘repeat’ students pose a challenge in that teachers have difficulty identifying their individual needs, and catering for them. To address this, we enrolled these students in a partially online blended learning program. Students were also informed about the possibility of getting individual support from ILC advisors. In order to facilitate the advising sessions, new materials and tools have been devised or adapted. A few months’ experience in advising has given us a better understanding of our students and raised our motivation to turn the LAP into a more functional system.

Philippines expands disaster risk advisory program

Philippines expands disaster risk advisory program

Middle School Advisory: Students' Perceptions of Its Effectiveness

The purpose of this study was to determine if an advisory program that is being implemented in a Central Illinois Junior High School is beneficial in meeting the needs of a school’s student population. Studies have shown that advisory programs help students socially and academically, and are critical in the development of adolescents. Literature supports advisory time in that it gives students an adult to connect to and creates a sense of belongingness. A mixed method survey consisting of Likert scale questions, open-ended questions, and multiple choice questions was electronically distributed to the student population after advisory lessons. Data was analyzed by specifically exploring the descriptive statistics. The findings in this study showed students reported the advisory program as effective, necessary, and often provide topics they could relate to.Keywords: Middle School, Advisory Programs, Adolescents development, perception of effectiveness, social and academic development

Accelerating Change in Medical Education after the Dismantlement of the Intern Training System

In light of changes in today’s medical environment, whether to dismantle the 50-year-old internship training system in the Republic of Korea is under debate. Although the question remains open, discussions on such issues have drawn attention to the quality of the clinical clerkship and student career advisory programs in medical colleges. The purpose of this study is to analyze the experiential clerkship and career exploration issues. Ensuring excellence of the clerkship and career advisory sessions is an essential responsibility of educational institutions regardless of whether the intern training system is dismantled. Important objectives of the experimental clerkship include reinforcing prerequisites established by law, introducing a student practice license, developing a standardized clinical assessment and student portfolio requirement, and publishing a guidebook for clinical directors. For career exploration, it is necessary to broaden participants’ experiences of specialties and to manage the variety of student career guidance programs. It is imperative for the Korean Association of Medical Colleges, in collaboration with medical colleges, to play a leading role in focusing more attention and effort on such issues.

Financial literacy and financial planning: Evidence from India

In this study we report findings about financial literacy and financial planning behavior based on a financial advisory program in India. We evaluate survey responses to three standard questions previously used to measure financial literacy. We then break down the data across particular demographic and socioeconomic groups and compare responses. Finally, we examine the investment behavior, liability choice, risk tolerance and insurance usage of program participants. We find that the vast majority of respondents appear to be financially literate based on their answers to questions concerning interest rates (numeracy), inflation, and risk/diversification. However, we do find variation across demographic and socioeconomic groups. We are also able to obtain additional information about the financial tendencies of the program participants (including risk tolerance, investment preferences, investment goals, etc.) and to relate those tendencies to financial literacy.

How Small Business Advisory Program Delivery Methods (Collective Learning, Tailored, and Practice‐Based Approaches) Affect Learning and Innovation

Past studies relate small business advisory program effectiveness to advisory characteristics such as advisory intensity and scope. We contribute to existing literature by seeking to identify the impact of different advisory program methods of delivery on learning and subsequent firm innovation behavior. Our research is based on a survey of 257 ustralian firms completing small business advisory programs in the three years preceding the research. We explore the range of small business advisory program delivery methods in which our surveyed firms participated and, with reference to the literature on organizational learning and innovation, we analyze predictors of firms' learning ability and innovativeness based on the identified delivery methods. First, we found that business advisory programs that involved high levels of collective learning and tailored approaches enhanced firms' perceptions of their learning of critical skills or capabilities. We also found that small business advisory programs that were delivered by using practice‐based approaches enhanced firms' subsequent organizational innovation. We verified this finding by testing whether firms that have participated in small business advisory services subsequently demonstrate improved behavior in terms of organizational innovativeness, when compared with matched firms that have not participated in an advisory program.

Evolution of Wisconsin’s Fish Consumption Advisory Program

Local Great Lakes Basin fish are an important source of high quality food for Wisconsin residents. Despite contaminant source elimination and public health educational efforts, Wisconsin anglers co...

Photonovels: An Innovative Approach to Address Health Disparities and Sustainability

Medically underserved and underrepresented communities have high rates of health disparities. In the greater Tampa Bay area, communities of color are disproportionately affected by chronic diseases such as cancer. In response to these concerns and as part of a lay health advisory program being implemented by the Center for Equal Health, a University of South Florida/H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute partnership, our group created a photonovel, an educational tool which explains topics using a graphic novel style. The photonovel was designed to educate community members about prostate cancer and was compared to standard cancer educational materials currently used for cancer outreach. We found that our photonovel served as an effective health education tool to address cancer health disparities in medically underserved and underrepresented populations in Tampa Bay.

Are medical students being properly cared for? A question for the current student advisory program

Medical students need close care and systematic management of their mental and emotional health during their academic tenure. This study examined the status of the current student advisory program and counseling office, the satisfaction of the current student advisory program, the core content of an advisory program, and the quality of a good advisor. We asked 64 faculties that were in charge of the student advisory program and medical education and 774 medical students from 41 medical schools in Korea to answer a survey. Statistical analysis, chi-square test, and ordered multiple response analysis were performed. A significant number of faculty members (63.5%) and students (53.4%) indicated the existence of problems with the current advisory program. 'Deviations from the content (27.3%)' was the faculty's predominant complaint versus 'too formal (31.3%)' for students. A total of 55.5% of faculty members replied that the counseling program was helpful, but students were somewhat skeptical (13.9%). The core content of the advisory program was 'school life & academic counseling (28.3%)' by the faculty versus 'life as a medical doctor (22.3%)' for students. Both faculty and students replied that the quality of a good advisor is having 'concerns about students.' Current student advisory and counseling programs are not much help to students. A differentiated program for specific academic years should be considered to provide a tailored and valuable service.

Hazard perception of Dutch farmers and veterinarians related to dairy young stock rearing

A group of 110 dairy farmers and 26 bovine veterinarians participated in a web-based questionnaire using the adaptive conjoint analysis technique to rank their perception regarding several hazards during 6 subsequent periods of the process of dairy young stock rearing. The method applied only involved selected respondents with a high consistency in their answering (correlation >30%). For the ranking, answers were first transformed into a utility score (US) for each hazard. The final ranking for each of the 6 periods was based on the US per hazard separately for farmers and veterinarians. Besides the ranking, the absolute values and the US itself were also compared between farmers and veterinarians to determine any statistically significant differences between the levels of the score despite the ranking. The overall conclusion is that, for almost every designated period, the ranking of the hazards differed between farmers and veterinarians. Only 1 period was observed (period IV, Pregnancy period until 4 weeks before calving) where veterinarians and farmers had the same top 3 ranking of the hazards, namely “Mastitis,” “Abortion,” and “Poor growth rate of the pregnant heifer.” Major differences between farmers and veterinarians were seen during period II (feeding milk until weaning) for the hazard “Diarrhea in older calf,” which was considered less important by farmers compared to veterinarians, and period number III (weaning until insemination) for “Over-condition,” which, again, was seen as the most important hazard by veterinarians, but only ranked as number 5 by farmers. Besides the ranking, significant differences in absolute US values between veterinarians and farmers were seen in “Infection with Johne's disease” (14.5 vs. 7.8), “Diarrhea in newborn calf” (18.2 vs. 12.2), and “Insufficient feed intake” (16.2 vs. 8.4) in period I (colostrum until transition to milk replacer). Lameness represented the most important significant difference in absolute values in period III (weaning until insemination; 6.3 vs. 14.3), which was again significant in period V (4 wks before calving until calving; 7.4 vs. 12.1). The outcome of this study shows that hazard perception of veterinarians and farmers differs for most rearing periods (in ranking and absolute values). The outcome of this study can be used for 2 purposes: first, to improve communication between farmers and their consulting veterinarian about hazards and hazard perception in young stock rearing; and second, the US scores can be used to select top priority hazards which should at least be integrated into management advisory programs to improve dairy young stock rearing.

Implementing and Refining a Faculty-Resident Mentorship Program

c f o w o f t e a f c THE PROBLEM: LACK OF FORMAL FACULTY-RESIDENT MENTORSHIP PROGRAM Mentorship is widely acknowledged as requisite for organizational success. Effective mentorship is fundamental to sustaining and improving radiology in the future [1,2]. Mentorship of junior faculty by senior faculty at academic medical centers facilitates networking opportunities, research productivity, and departmental promotion [3-5]. Early mentorship opportunities for residents and fellows may enhance these benefits, along with encouragement to pursue academic careers [6,7]. Despite this potential for scalable impact, establishing structured programs to mentor residents has been slow. In a 2010 survey of radiology program directors, 85% of respondents agreed that residents should have mentors. But only 57% of program directors reported having a formal program in place, whereas 42% of those surveyed believed implementing a more structured program was needed. Of those institutions that had mentorship programs in place, nearly twothirds had instituted them in the preceding 5 years [8]. We recently recognized this opportunity for improvement in our academic training program. In 2008, we instituted a resident peer advisory program, in which firstyear residents were matched with

What Kind of Mentoring Do We Need? A Review of Mentoring Program Studies for Medical Students

Nearly every medical school in Korea has a student advisory program, regardless of its form or method, but it is plagued by efficiency. To examine efficient means of delivering student advisory programs, we chose 'mentoring' as one solution and reviewed the concepts of a mentor and mentoring, the qualities and roles of a mentor, and examples of national and international cases of mentoring. The concept of mentoring is diverse, but it connotes and stresses aspects, such as individual guidance, tutoring, life coaching, and role modeling. We conclude that the quality of many student advisory programs can be elevated by providing holistic and systematic guidance that meets the demands of the mentees; giving individual, continuous, and intimate coaching; and guiding a balanced academic and social life and career, which will develop good doctors who can provide a holistic health care.

An advisory program for first- and second-year medical students: the Weill Cornell experience

PurposeFirst-year students negotiate new professional culture with a certain amount of excitement and anxiety. There are different approaches for offering guidance. In this study, the authors present Weill Cornell Medical College's experience with an advising program for first- and second-year students.MethodsFifty faculty advisors were each assigned 1–3 first-year students who they would follow for 2 years. The responsibilities were outlined to both faculty and students. The program was evaluated using an anonymous questionnaire.ResultsFor the two classes surveyed (2011 and 2012), most students met their advisors once. For both classes, the most frequently discussed issues were general adjustment to medical school, academic life, and the professional life of the advisor. Summer research and career opportunities were also discussed. Most students were satisfied with the advising program. Satisfaction increased with an increase in visits. Most students who did not meet their advisors established an advisor relationship on their own.ConclusionsAn advising program was established at Weill Cornell Medical College that satisfied most of the students. It is important to evaluate its format regularly, from both student and advisor perspectives, in order to ensure its continued success.