Post-participation Surveys Research Articles

144 Texas grassroots Extension program maintains 50 years of impact in horsemanship

The Texas A&M AgriLife Summer Horsemanship School (SHS) program has been providing horse enthusiasts of all skill levels and ages with horsemanship skills through 2 or 3-d schools for 50 consecutive years. The long-standing impact of the program has been a significant driver for Texas A&M students’ experiential learning as horsemanship instructors (∼341) and grassroots education across the state for school participants (∼29,400). Post surveys for (1) student instructors and (2) school participants were collected and analyzed separately in total for 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022 to evaluate participant knowledge gained, adoption of new practices, satisfaction, and increased confidence and competence, and student instructor impact. This did not include 2020, due to limited schools taught by former student instructors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data was analyzed for descriptive statistics using the means and frequency procedures in SAS 9.4 (Cary, NC). Most school participants were female (77.9%), 15 years old or younger (77.3%), and reported being in 4-H (66.8%). Participants reported having riding experience of less than 1 year (8.2%), 1–5 years (35.3%), 6–10 years (30.4%), or more than 10 years (26.2%). Post-participation survey responses indicate that 81.6% could now do one or more advanced maneuvers that they were previously unable to do (n = 602) and 87.9% reported they were able to ride with more confidence (n = 546). Of the 12 horsemanship topics assessed (Table 1), participants learned “a few or more things” on average 89.1% of the time. When evaluating overall satisfaction, 94.8% stated that they enjoyed most, if not all, of the school. As for the student instructors(n = 21), 88% strongly agreed that their experience in the program had a profound impact on their collegiate careers and believed the skills they developed would be useful in their future careers. The impact of the SHS program is a testimony to the effectiveness of grassroots education on horsemanship in Extension programming, in addition to, collegiate student experiential learning.

Remote Patient Monitoring for Postpartum Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy [ID: 1378058

INTRODUCTION: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) account for 2.5–4.6% of readmissions within 6 weeks postpartum (PP); 60% occur in the first 7 days. A standardized approach to HDP management can improve outcomes through optimized PP blood pressure (BP) management. Remote patient monitoring (RPM) has established safety, outcomes, financial benefit, and increased compliance. The primary outcome of this study was to determine the feasibility of a standardized RPM program for PP patients with HDP. METHODS: Participants (n=30) received a phone application and BP monitor that automatically uploaded data to a nurse practitioner (NP)-monitored dashboard. Participants were asked to record a single BP twice daily (6 am–11 am and 6 pm–11 pm) until 10 days PP. Telehealth visits with an NP occurred at 48 hours postdischarge. Feasibility was measured using a one-sided t test of the proportion of participants with satisfaction (via validated Likert-style post-participation surveys) and adherence of 80% or higher (recorded BPs/expected BPs). Secondary outcomes included readmissions, elevated BPs (mild, 140–159/90–109 mm Hg; severe, ≥160/110 mm Hg), and antihypertensive medication up-titration. RESULTS: One hundred percent of participants completed the program. Overall adherence rate was 91%, and overall satisfaction rate was 92%. Of 450 recorded BP measurements, 88 (19.6%) were mild and 2 (0.4%) were severe, with 0 hospital readmissions. Medication up-titration occurred seven times in six participants (20%). We demonstrated feasibility with a proportion of 0.767 participants (P=.0027; CI: 0.577, 0.885). CONCLUSION: A standardized RPM program for PP HDP utilizing early telemedicine visits with an NP successfully demonstrated feasibility in a pilot sample of PP patients. Compliance with PP follow-up recommendations was high. Future work to improve systems innovation for BP optimization in PP patients is needed.

Nurses Transitioning to Primary Health Care in Australia: A Practice Improvement Initiative.

Current nursing programs provide little pre-registration information and clinical exposure to primary health care nursing practice. Newly graduated nurses and those transitioning to primary health care report disorientation and confusion. Limited knowledge about the ideal elements of a program to support transitioning nurses is an imperative to understand how best to support nurses during this period. The peak body for nurses in primary health care was funded to develop and implement a 1-year transition to practice improvement initiative for nurses in Australia about to be employed in or who are new to primary health care. This quality improvement evaluation study aimed to determine the impact of the transition program on participants' nursing knowledge, skills, and confidence, and their overall satisfaction with the program. A mixed methods evaluation of the project utilized data from online pre- and post-participation surveys, mentor meetings, and field notes. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests were employed for quantitative items. Free text and field notes were subject to broad thematic analysis. Findings from qualitative and quantitative data were triangulated. Ninety-three nurse participants and 62 mentors were recruited. There were statistically significant differences between mean summed post-completion and pre-completion self-assessment rating scores for knowledge, skills, and confidence. Program elements were well received. The orientation workshop, mentoring, and education activities were identified as most influential in supporting transition. The self-assessment framework was identified as least influential. A 12-month transition program was effective in building the knowledge, skills, and confidence of participants to deliver comprehensive and effective nursing services.

The RAST-NP Pilot: Preparing New Graduate Nurse Practitioners for Emergent Procedures in Remote Settings Using a Novel Training Program.

With more new graduate primary care nurse practitioners (NPs) practicing in remote locales than ever before, their preparation for performing emergency procedural skills (EPSs) is critical for safe and effective care. Emergency procedural skills are not uniformly taught in primary care academic programs but are easily imparted via additional training and practice. The purpose of this project was to develop and pilot an expert panel-validated training program specifically for NPs bound for remote practice and to evaluate how the participants rated their self-efficacy in performing specific EPSs before and after completing the training, called the Remote Advanced Skills Training for NPs (RAST-NP). A diverse expert panel rated EPSs to determine skills to be included in a pilot training program. After achieving consensus on skills to be taught, a hybrid online-in-person curriculum was developed using standards from the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning. This training was conducted for more than 2 days and delivered to a class of 15 primary care NP students in their final year of education. All participants completed a pre- and postparticipation survey to assess their self-efficacy using a validated questionnaire, modified to address the EPSs taught. The participants reported higher confidence following training on all EPSs taught, as indicated by an increase in difference in mean scores from 1 to 6.15 on an 11-point scale. For each EPS, the difference was statistically significant by both a paired t test and a Whitney-Mann U test with probability of 0.01 or less. Results indicate that the methods utilized (i.e., psychomotor practice) increased confidence in NP students, and they also suggest that the amount of time spent practicing skills is associated with interval increases in confidence. A combination of didactic and psychomotor methods was uniformly effective at increasing confidence, and thereby self-efficacy, and higher success is associated with more time practicing the kinesthetic skills in situ.

QLTI-12. THE IMPACT OF MENTORING ON EARLY CAREER FACULTY: ASSESSMENT OF A VIRTUAL MENTORING PROGRAM

Abstract BACKGROUND Participation in mentorship programs for early career physicians is crucial to developing key skills and professional networks, but availability and opportunities for mentorship may be hampered by racial, ethnic and gender leadership disparities in medicine. A 6-month virtually facilitated peer mentorship program for women and diverse early career faculty was developed and piloted through the Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO) Women & Diversity Committee. METHODS We designed and conducted a 6-month pilot open to SNO’s multidisciplinary early career members, leveraging peer-mentoring sessions with mid-to late-career physician mentors. A curriculum with online resources was provided and group assignments were based on time-zones and interests. Pre- and post-participation surveys assessed mentee experience and descriptive statistics assessed participant demographics and survey results. Results/ CONCLUSION Twenty mentee applicants participated in 5 groups. Mentees were 90% women, 60% from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Most were aged 31-40 (75%) and junior faculty (50%) in neuro-oncology (65%). Five mentors (2 female) practiced either neuro-oncology (3), neurosurgery (1) or radiation oncology (1). The proportion of mentees with a signature talk increased from 15% to 71% during the pilot. A large majority (64%) reported a positive impact of the program on their profile, career and networking, and reported participation was worthwhile (86%), and worth recommending to others (93%). Feedback themes included personal growth, peer support, networking, job opportunities, desire for late career female mentors, and scheduling constraints. The virtual environment during a global pandemic allowed participants to connect, creating a venue to discuss topics such as work-life balance, burnout, and self-advocacy. We did not have 100% post pilot follow up despite multiple attempts, limiting complete understanding of the pilot. This virtual mentorship pilot program proved feasible and of value in development of early career women and diverse individuals. A resource toolkit has been designed to scale and diffuse.

Abstract 11252: Developing an Interactive Online Curriculum for Teaching Pediatric Electrocardiogram Interpretation

Introduction: Interpretation of pediatric ECGs is a specific skill set that requires familiarity with normal electrographic changes in the developing heart, as well as recognition of a wide range of dysrhythmias or conduction alterations secondary to structural lesions. General pediatricians should use ECGs for various pediatric emergencies, common outpatient concerns and sports participation clearance. Previous studies showed that pediatric trainees are neither comfortable nor proficient in reading ECGs. We developed an interactive self- learning program for teaching pediatric ECG interpretation. Methods: In collaboration between pediatric residents and cardiologists, we created the curriculum, identifying high-yield topics, ‘red flags’ and age- related normal variances that are important to recognize. We built a 5-10-minute teaching module for each topic using Adobe Captivate. The modules were available online on a shared server. Participants were asked to take pre- and post-participation surveys and interpretation skill tests to define knowledge gaps and to focus our curricular development. Results: The pilot curriculum comprised of 14 high-yield topics, general and pediatric- focused. The modules included real ECG samples with multiple-choice questions testing specific electrographic aberrations, followed by audiovisual explanations. The pre-participation survey and test were completed by 57 participants: pediatric residents (59%) and others. Most reported that they do not feel comfortable with distinguishing normal from abnormal ECGs (77.2%), nor recognizing arrhythmias (75.5%) or identifying signs of structural abnormalities (98.3%). The mean test score was 5.13 ± 1.8 out of 10 questions answered correctly, with no significant difference between pediatric residents or other trainees ( p =0.78). Conclusions: We present a newly developed educational program for ECG interpretation that centers on visual learning and pattern recognition of high yield findings in pediatrics. Initial surveys confirm the need for an accessible and engaging teaching tool and we have shared the online modules to be available outside of our institution. We intend to continue and develop the program as more feedback is received.

Participant Evaluation of a Multi-Disciplinary Oncology Preceptorship and Training Program for Oncology Health Professionals from Ghana

<h3>Purpose/Objective(s)</h3> The disparate cancer outcomes in low- and middle-income countries are a result of limited material resources and a critical shortage of skilled health care workers. A 2018 needs assessment performed in Kumasi, Ghana, identified a lack of a multidisciplinary cancer approach as a primary challenge to improving cancer care. Here we report a participant evaluation of a multidisciplinary preceptorship program. <h3>Materials/Methods</h3> In collaboration with the city of Kumasi, a single US based academic center and NGO hosted a preceptorship program to provide comprehensive training for the multidisciplinary management of breast and cervix cancer. A total of 14 health care workers from Kumasi, Ghana, representing all cancer care disciplines, received 2 weeks of preceptorship at the US host institution in November and December 2021. Each participant and preceptor were requested to complete an anonymous post-participation survey. <h3>Results</h3> Of the 14 participants, 10 completed the survey. All participants found participation in the program "valuable and applicable to their clinical practice." 90% of participants indicated they were able to "review effective and critical elements in the development and expansion of the multidisciplinary team" and able to "solve practical clinical cases as a team" and are "very likely to continue collaborating with the contacts" from the host institution. General themes of satisfaction include (1) organization and administration, (2) clinical observations and demonstrations, (3) guidelines development, and (4) networking with many recognizing the central importance of multidisciplinary care and the value of cultivating a team-based approach. Pertinent to radiation oncology, respondent satisfaction related to clinical observation, demonstration, and guideline development in VMAT and HDR planning, linear accelerator function and maintenance, and other medical physics quality assurance processes. The most common request for improvement was to increase the duration of the program with other respondents suggesting identification of future preceptors with specific interest in global oncology. A total of 16 out of 40 preceptors completed the survey. All respondents reported that the training was felt to meaningfully "influence patient care in Ghana", that participation as a preceptor "added value or joy to their clinical practice," and all wished to "participate in future preceptorship programs." <h3>Conclusion</h3> After a focused 2-week oncology training program, participants from Ghana reported high satisfaction, usefulness from observing specialized cancer care, and value in closely observing a multidisciplinary oncology team. Preceptors reported the experience added joy and perspective to their clinical practice and wished to participate in future preceptorship programs.

Use of An Ophthalmology Tutorial to Improve Resident Comfort with the Emergency Eye Exam.

This tutorial should be utilized for emergency medicine (EM) interns and junior residents. Ophthalmology is characteristically a weak area in both medical school and resident education. Medical students are rarely given formal didactic education on the use of the slit lamp or a systematic approach to examining the eye. For EM residents, this leads to inefficient and uncomfortable encounters with patients with eye complaints. We sought to develop a comprehensive emergency ophthalmology tutorial utilizing asynchronous learning followed by a hands-on skill session that would address this need. By the end of this small group didactic, learners will be able to: 1) demonstrate ability to focus on the various components of the slit lamp exam 2) demonstrate understanding of a systematic approach to the eye exam 3) demonstrate appropriate use of the Diaton, iCare, and Tonopen tonometers. This two-hour small group didactic combines hands-on learning sessions to learn the slit lamp exam and tonometry measurement, with a systematic review of the eye exam to help learners better organize their exams and understand the use of necessary tools. The emergency ophthalmology tutorial was initially designed as an education project in which we collected pre- and post-participation surveys regarding resident comfort with various components of the emergency eye exam. After the course residents received a post-course survey to complete. Given the positive feedback we received from our residents regarding the tutorial, we applied for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval to publish our retrospective survey data. Our IRB waived the need for participant consent. Twelve emergency medicine residents including 11 interns and one post-graduate year (PGY) 2 resident participated in the emergency ophthalmology tutorial as part of our intern boot camp in July of 2021. Twelve PGY-1 residents initially signed up for the course and filled out the pre-participation survey but one of them was not able to attend their scheduled class, so a PGY-2 resident requested to attend.Prior to the course, we used a Likert scale from 1-7, finding that 61.5% (8/13) of participants felt very uncomfortable with performing slit lamp exams, 84.6% (11/13) felt very uncomfortable with using the Diaton tonometer, 76.9% (10/13) felt very uncomfortable with using the iCare tonometer, and 69.3% (9/13) felt uncomfortable or very uncomfortable with using a systematic approach to examining the eye. After the course, 75% (9/12) of participants felt that the course exceeded expectations in ensuring their ability to perform the subcomponents of the slit lamp exam, 75% (9/12) and 83.3% (10/12) of participants felt that the course exceeded expectations in ensuring their ability to use the Diaton and iCare tonometers, respectively, and 91.7% (11/12) felt that the course exceeded expectations in ensuring their ability to perform a systematic eye exam. Participation in a 2-hour emergency ophthalmology tutorial with assigned asynchronous pre-course work improved emergency medicine resident comfort with various components of the eye exam. Emergency ophthalmology, eye exam, slit lamp, tonometry.

Rare Disease Education Outside of the Classroom and Clinic: Evaluation of the RARE Compassion Program for Undergraduate Medical Students.

Launched in 2014, the RARE Compassion Program is the first international educational program to pair medical students with rare disease patients in order to enhance exposure to and comfort with rare diseases. As part of ongoing quality improvement, this study retrospectively reviewed four years of participant registration data to conduct a program evaluation of the RARE Compassion Program between 2014–2018. During the study period, there were 334 student participants, representing 67.3% of Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) member medical schools, and 5389 rare disease volunteers. Despite not requiring in-person interaction, 90.64% of student–volunteer interactions were in-person, while only 5.89% and 3.46% were by video messaging or email correspondence, respectively (p = 0.0002). In a limited post participation survey, 91.7% of students, who matched to 19 out of 27 residency specialities, indicated they would recommend the program to their peers. These findings suggest that the RARE Compassion Program, designed to increase medical student engagement with rare disease patients, has broad appeal. It serves as a novel case study of how extracurricular initiatives supported by non-profit organizations can augment the medical training experience and improve understanding of important and often neglected perspectives.

SARS-CoV-2 rapid antigen screening of asymptomatic employees: a pilot project.

SettingRapid antigen screening can be effective in identifying infectious individuals in occupational settings to reduce transmission and outbreaks. We report results from a pilot project at the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) and describe the operationalization. Toronto Pearson is a large international airport encompassing over 400 employers and, pre-pandemic, with approximately 50,000 employees.InterventionAn employee screening program was piloted between March 8 and May 28, 2021, to implement rapid antigen testing for asymptomatic employees. Recruitment targeted enrolment of 400 employees and yielded participation of 717 from 58 companies. Employees were recommended to book three times per week for nasal swabs on site, and were tested on the Abbot PanbioTM rapid antigen test. No action was taken from a negative result, and if positive, the employee was told to isolate at home and obtain a confirmatory polymerase chain reaction test.OutcomesA total of 5117 tests were performed on 717 individuals over 12 weeks; 5091 tests were negative (99.5%), and 22 individuals tested positive (3.1% positivity rate). One hundred twenty-four (17%) completed the post-participation survey. All respondents reported that testing did not change their behaviour at work with respect to public health recommendations, and only 1 (1%) reported behaviour change outside of work (socializing with family) as a result of the program.ImplicationsThis pilot program identified 22 (3.1%) potentially infectious employees. Onsite testing was feasible and highly accepted by this group of employees who completed the survey. Education resulted in reasonable uptake and no substantial change in behaviour, although the survey response rate may limit generalizability. Home-based testing may facilitate larger recruitment.

Student-Run Teen and Tot Service: Increasing Medical Trainee Exposure to Pediatric Education while Providing Educational and Health Services to Teenage Mothers and their Children

Background: Student Run Teen and Tot Service (SRTTS) is a student-run, interdisciplinary service-learning program at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC). In this paper, we describe the program, which aims to increase medical students’ exposure to pediatrics while providing education and support to teenage mothers and their babies.&#x0D; Methods: Medical students at BUSM learned developmental milestones and trained in communication, patient-centered education, and the pediatric interview and physical exam. SRTTS leaders recruited patients to free monthly service evenings held at BMC. The babies received medical exams and the teenage mothers received health and parenting education. Students filled out pre- and post-participation surveys rating their comfort with pediatric medicine and education, and patients completed demographic and satisfaction surveys. Both the patient and student surveys were analyzed using a descriptive approach.&#x0D; Results: Analysis of pre-and post-participation student surveys demonstrated that the mean confidence level (reported on a 5-point scale, with 1=Not at all confident and 5=Extremely confident) increased for all measured domains, including interacting with children and adolescent mothers (from 2.46 to 4.08 and 2.08 to 3.92, respectively), giving anticipatory guidance (from 1.62 to 3.63), and performing a pediatric physical exam (1.08 to 2.85). Patients rated their experience with the program and the care they received highly, indicating that they would use the health education that they received in the future.&#x0D; Conclusions: The supplemental care provided by SRTTS was well received by patients. Additionally, medical students improved their skills in a variety of pediatric medicine and education topics. SRTTS is limited by the number of patients and students who participated. Expanding SRTTS will further integrate adolescent mothers and children into the healthcare system and allow medical students to further increase their proficiency in pediatric medicine.

Implementation and impact on length of stay of a post-discharge remote patient monitoring program for acutely hospitalized COVID-19 pneumonia patients.

ObjectiveIn order to manage COVID-19 patient population and bed capacity issues, remote patient monitoring (RPM) is a strategy used to transition patients from inpatients to home. We describe our RPM implementation process for post-acute care COVID-19 pneumonia patients. We also evaluate the impact of RPM on patient outcomes, including hospital length of stay (LOS), post-discharge Emergency Department (ED) visits, and hospital readmission.Materials and MethodsWe utilized a cloud-based RPM platform (Vivify Health) and a nurse-monitoring service (Global Medical Response) to enroll COVID-19 patients who required oxygen supplementation after hospital discharge. We evaluated patient participation, biometric alerts, and provider communication. We also assessed the program’s impact by comparing RPM patient outcomes with a retrospective cohort of Control patients who similarly required oxygen supplementation after discharge but were not referred to the RPM program. Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate the 2 groups’ demographic characteristics, hospital LOS, and readmission rates.ResultsThe RPM program enrolled 75 patients with respondents of a post-participation survey reporting high satisfaction with the program. Compared to the Control group (n = 150), which had similar demographics and baseline characteristics, the RPM group was associated with shorter hospital LOS (median 4.8 vs 6.1 days; P=.03) without adversely impacting return to the ED or readmission.ConclusionWe implemented a RPM program for post-acute discharged COVID-19 patients requiring oxygen supplementation. Our RPM program resulted in a shorter hospital LOS without adversely impacting quality outcomes for readmission rates and improved healthcare utilization by reducing the average LOS.

The impact of mentoring on early career faculty: Assessment of a virtual mentoring program.

11039 Background: Participation in mentorship programs for early career physicians may be crucial to developing key skills and professional networks to navigate racial, ethnic and gender leadership disparities in medicine. A 6-month virtual facilitated peer mentorship program was developed and piloted through the Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO) Women &amp; Diversity Committee. The evaluation of the program’s feasibility to positively impact early career physicians, investigators and trainees is presented here. Methods: We designed and conducted a virtual mentoring program pilot open to SNO’s multidisciplinary members in residency, fellowship, or early career phase, leveraging peer-mentoring sessions with mid-to late-career physician mentors. A curriculum with online resources was provided recommending groups meet for 6 sessions: 3 involving the mentor and 3 dedicated to peer-mentoring. Group assignments were based on time-zones and interests. Pre- and post-participation surveys assessed mentee experience. Descriptive statistics were used to assess participant demographics and survey results. Results: Our call for participation was broad; all 20 mentee applicants participated in 5 groups. Mentees were 90% women and 60% were from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Most were aged 31-40 (75%) and junior faculty (50%) in neuro-oncology (65%). The 5 senior mentors (3 men and 3 of diverse race and ethnic backgrounds) practiced either neuro-oncology (3), neurosurgery (1) or radiation oncology (1). The proportion who reporting having a signature lecture increased from 15% to 62% during the pilot. A large majority reported their participation was worthwhile (85%), that they would participate again (92%) and would recommend it to others (92%). Feedback themes included positive personal growth, peer support, networking and job opportunities, access to CV reviews, lack of and desire for late career female mentors, and virtual scheduling constraints. While the pilot was limited by several variables, it was timely to connect participants in Q3 of 2020 early in the COVID-19 global pandemic. The virtual meeting environment created a venue to share and discuss topics such as work-life balance, burnout, leading through change and social connection. Despite not achieving 100% professional concordance, participants found the experience worthwhile. The tools and curriculum of topics provided was implemented differently across groups, leading to varied experiences. Finally, we did not have 100% post pilot follow up despite multiple attempts limiting our complete understanding of the pilot. Conclusions: This virtual mentorship pilot program proved feasible and of value in development of early career women and diverse individuals. A resource toolkit has been designed to scale and diffuse.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Hybrid Model for Mobilization of Women for Cervical Cancer Screening; A Preliminary Report of a Pilot Project in Lagos, Nigeria. A Case Study of the Blue-Pink Center for Women's Health, Nigeria

PURPOSE Cervical cancer is the second commonest cancer in Nigeria, accounting for 14.8% of all cancer-related deaths in Nigeria. Studies have demonstrated poor knowledge and attitude of women toward cervical cancer, with screening rates as low as 0.7% among Nigerian women. Besides poor awareness and poverty, lack of easy access to cancer education and screening is among the biggest barriers to its effective prevention and control. Our project aimed to increase access to cervical cancer education and screening among rural and suburban women in Lagos, Nigeria. METHODS We introduced an integrated approach to mobilize women for cervical cancer screening (using Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid [VIA]) in four local councils in Lagos. This model involved a hybrid of a facility- and community-based provision of screening services. Daily, skilled nurses and community health extension workers actively mobilize community women for screening through a purpose-built screening center and regular community outreaches to mirror organized and opportunistic screening. Extensive community stakeholders engagement was used to mobilize women groups. Women were charged up to $2.92 to identify if putting a price deters willingness to screen and to evaluate the model's sustainability. Project evaluation was conducted by a mixed method of quantitative and qualitative assessments. RESULTS Within nine months of the pilot, 13,892 women received cancer education, 1,250 women had VIA, and 181 had cryotherapy. Knowledge about cervical cancer rose from an average of 13.7% in our pre-participation survey to 80% in the post-participation surveys. Increased trust in the screening was the commonest theme in the qualitative survey which increased service uptake. CONCLUSION Our preliminary findings show that this hybrid model increased access to, and uptake of, cervical cancer screening, even when a cost was attached. Provision of screening services in an organized and strategic people-oriented manner may yield better and sustained outcomes in resource-poor settings than either opportunistic screening or screening offered only as part of routine hospital services.

Leadership in Action: A Student-Run Designated Emphasis in Healthcare Leadership

Background: Throughout medical school students are exposed to a variety of fields within medicine, but structured leadership and teaching opportunities are limited. There is a need for more training to prepare students of all backgrounds to be future leaders in all healthcare realms, especially critical care medicine, in order to address the lack of diversity seen in leadership positions. Methods: Implemented entirely by students with faculty guidance, the Kern model was applied to develop a student-run longitudinal Designated Emphasis in Healthcare Leadership. This program was implemented at a medical school leading the nation in creating opportunities for diverse and underrepresented groups in medicine. Students are involved in structured leadership lectures, projects, and mentorship, and there is an emphasis on learning by doing. A survey was sent out to all present and past student participants to assess its acceptability and effectiveness. Results: A post-participation survey found that a total of 96% of participants identified themselves as healthcare leaders, felt confident leading a team, and felt comfortable working with a diverse team. Further, 96% of participants agreed or strongly agreed they would recommend the program to other medical students. Qualitative feedback revealed that participants felt they learned how to “apply leadership skills to the healthcare setting” and were provided an “environment to grow and practice vital leadership skills that will help [them] be effective clinicians.” Conclusions: Our initial research shows that introducing a longitudinal leadership program into Medical Education may allow participants to start developing personal and professional leadership qualities. The program is well-received by the students and preliminary data shows that there may be increase in leadership capabilities when participating in this program. Such a program can enable future healthcare providers to become leaders in their own fields, so that they can hone interpersonal communication skills, bridge the gap of representation in leadership positions, and lead teams effectively.

Twelve tips for conducting medical education research via videoconference

The demand for current practical advice in how to conduct research by videoconference is internationally recognised. Many researchers in medical education are transitioning to using online methods for the first time, through design or necessity. This paper aims to provide practical advice on utilising videoconference technology for research, from design to execution. The tips include how to manage important elements such as ethics approval, online etiquette, contingency planning, technology management, and data capture. Recommendations include how to promote participant engagement with online data collection methods, in some cases paralleling the literature around synchronous online learning. The tried and tested tips have been developed by the authors based on their research experience, a literature review and the results of a post-participation survey of medical students on their experiences engaging in research online via videoconference.

The Plastic Surgery Common Application: Improving Efficiency and Reducing Inequity in the Application Process.

Summary:The residency application process is expensive, costing an average of $2149 in application fees per applicant during the 2020–2021 cycle. Additionally, the number of applications per applicant continues to rise annually across all specialties. This considerable cost creates a financial barrier for students, particularly those from first-generation and underrepresented backgrounds. Moreover, the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) application generates a lengthy, diluted output that hinders a holistic review. We developed the Plastic Surgery Common Application (PSCA), a focused, specialty-specific application external to ERAS with the goal of lessening the financial barrier for students and improving reviewer satisfaction. The PSCA was revised over a 5-month period after prepiloting with stakeholders. All integrated plastic surgery programs were invited to participate. Of the 86 plastic surgery programs, 20 agreed to participate in the pilot, accepting both ERAS and PSCA for direct comparison. A total of 181 completed applications were received through the PSCA. In a postparticipation survey, most applicants and reviewers felt that the PSCA offered a reasonable alternative to ERAS, despite minor technical difficulties. The PSCA pilot demonstrates that there is a reasonable alternative to applying to residency through ERAS and offers a template for developing a system that is not cost-prohibitive to applicants. The PSCA also demonstrates the benefit of a specialty-specific, customizable application for reviewer efficiency and satisfaction.

Evaluation of the Association of Academic Physiatrists Medical Student Summer Clinical Externship.

The Medical Student Summer Clinical Externship is an 8-wk program hosted by the Association of Academic Physiatrists and offered to first year medical students. Various institutions sponsor participants and provide clinical exposure and mentorship opportunities to promote interest in the field. The program has had more than 100 medical student participants. Students were asked to complete a preparticipation and postparticipation survey. Results revealed a statistically significant increase in interest in physiatry and participants' scores for comfort and experience level in obtaining a history of present illness, general physical examination, and managing developmental, musculoskeletal, and neurologic disabilities. The Medical Student Summer Clinical Externship program provides an opportunity for mentorship and exposure to various subspecialties that likely reinforces student interest in those who are predisposed to physiatry. Students' increased comfort level in treating patients with developmental, musculoskeletal, and neurologic disabilities may lead to improvements in the quality of and access to care received by these populations. All participants gain an increased awareness of the scope of practice of physiatry that will hopefully lead to the increased integration of physical medicine and rehabilitation into the care plans and as a standard of care for patients who might greatly benefit.

Participant and research team perspectives on the conduct of a remote therapeutic COVID-19 clinical trial: A mixed methods approach.

Responding to the need to investigate potential treatments of COVID-19, a research team employed a telehealth platform to determine whether niclosamide, an oral anthelmintic drug that had shown antiviral activity, reduced SARS-CoV-2 shedding and duration of symptoms in patients with mild-to-moderate symptoms of COVID-19. To encourage compliance with patient self-quarantine, this randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted utilizing a remote telehealth design to complete all study visits, monitor symptoms, and coordinate participant self-collected specimens. A mixed methods approach employing surveys and interviews of trial participants and interviews of research team members was used to collect their experiences with and perspectives on the acceptability of the remote clinical trial design and delivery. Of the 67 eligible trial participants invited to take part in a study to evaluate the telehealth platform, 46% (n = 31) completed a post-participation survey. While 97% (n = 30) of respondents had not previously participated in a clinical trial, 77% (n = 24) reported they would consider taking part in a future remote research study. The majority of respondents were moderately or very comfortable (93%) with using the technology. The COVID-19 crisis was a call to action to expand understanding of the conduct of remote clinical trials, including the experiences of research participants. Our findings showed that this approach can be both effective for the conduct of research and positive for participants. Further research on the use of telehealth research platforms seems warranted in rural, underserved populations, and remote trials of prevention, screening, and treatment.

85. A Virtual Platform for Mentoring Clinician Educators at IDWeek is as Effective as In-Person

Abstract Background Career mentorship for clinician educators (CE) may be difficult to obtain within one’s home institution. During IDWeek 2018 and 2019, a mentoring program pairing junior faculty pursuing careers as CEs with more experienced CEs from other institutions was found to be feasible and effective. During IDWeek 2020, the program was transitioned to a virtual format. We assessed the feasibility and efficacy of this virtual mentoring program. Methods Junior and established CEs were recruited through the IDSA listserv and Medical Education Community of Practice and paired. Mentees completed an individual development plan (IDP) and identified discussion topics for their meeting. Mentors received training on successful mentoring and their mentee’s IDP and CV prior to meeting. Mentor and mentees met via videoconference for one hour during IDWeek 2020, created an action plan, and scheduled a follow-up call. Post-participation surveys were sent to mentees and mentors. Results 30 mentor and mentee pairs were matched; 1 pair did not meet. Compared to IDWeek 2018 (17) and 2019 (20), the 2020 program had more mentees (30). 24 (80%) mentees completed the pre-session survey; 17 (59%) mentees and 20 (69%) mentors completed the post-session survey. When compared to survey results from mentees in 2018-19 who met in-person, mentees in the virtual format reported similarly high rates of satisfaction, planned to make changes at work, had an increase in confidence, and felt it was a valuable experience (Table 1). Mentors also reported high rates of satisfaction with the experience in 2020 and were likely to participate in the program next year (Table 2). Only 1 (6%) mentee reported that the virtual format negatively impacted their experience, although 6 (30%) mentors reported some negative impact of the virtual format (Table 3). Table 1. Post-session mentee survey responses across 2 in-person years (2018, 2019) compared to the virtual mentoring program (2020) Table 2. Post-session mentor survey responses across 2 in-person years (2018, 2019) compared to the virtual mentoring program (2020) Table 3. Experience of mentees and mentors with the 2020 virtual mentoring program Conclusion A virtual mentoring program for CEs was feasible and as effective for mentees as an in-person format. Some mentors felt that the virtual nature did negatively impact the experience although it had minimal negative impact on mentees. Disclosures David J. Riedel, MD, MPH , Gilead (Advisor or Review Panel member)ViiV (Advisor or Review Panel member) Vera Luther, MD, Nothing to disclose Wendy Armstrong, MD, Nothing to disclose Brian Schwartz, MD, Nothing to disclose