Program Quality Assessment Research Articles

Quality assessment of postgraduate safety education programs, current developments with examples of ten (post)graduate safety courses in Europe

Professionalization of safety is gaining some interest in international safety literature, including (post)graduate training and education of safety experts. Different from research, there are hardly any publications and discussions on the quality of (post) graduate safety education in the academic safety literature. This article starts with a short historical picture of safety education. After this picture, a description of the ten (post) graduate safety courses involved is presented with a special reference to the assessment of the quality of these courses. It shows that an internal evaluation of quality, like reactions from trainees, and results from examinations, and tests are presently the main quality indicators. Discussions on how quality assessment can be performed has led to an overview of literature on educational objectives and educational models, and possible options for this assessment. The article concludes that the transfer of safety knowledge and skills to companies and organizations is a highly desirable elaboration of the quality concept. But it is also clear that traditional safety indicators can provide no, or only unreliable, information about the degree of this transfer. An overview of possible minor and major accident scenarios of the company or organisation concerned might be a better option, combined with the activities of the trainee to influence and prevent activation of these scenarios.

Quality assessment of enterprise risk management programs

Enterprise risk management (ERM) is an important process for organizations to manage risks and identify opportunities in a holistic manner. Earlier studies have explored antecedents and consequences of ERM programs considering organizational, procedural, technical, and other related factors. However, limited evidence is available regarding the effectiveness of ERM programs. Using semi-structured interviews with ERM experts, this paper explores how experts assess the efficacy and quality of ERM programs and whether they adopt project management (PM) and total quality management (TQM) tools for implementing and improving the ERM program. Further, the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) technique is used to explore causality among factors influencing the efficacy of an ERM program. The findings of this study provide useful insights to both practitioners and researchers to better understand the importance of assessing and enhancing the quality of ERM programs, and establish cause-effect relationships across factors influencing the efficacy of such programs.

A Case Study on the Assessment of Program Quality through CO-PO Mapping and its Attainment

A Case Study on the Assessment of Program Quality through CO-PO Mapping and its Attainment

Evaluation of an interprofessional, evidence-based falls training

ABSTRACT Fall-related injuries and mortality are increasing in older adults. Evidence suggests a need for a multifactorial, interprofessional approach to reducing falls. The Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) utilizes an interprofessional approach to care and serves a high-risk population. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of an EBP falls prevention training program conducted at a PACE. The program was a revision of an established program and was led by an interprofessional team. The evaluation used a mixed-methods approach to assess program quality, learning and self-efficacy gains, and intended behavioral changes. Quantitative evaluation demonstrated program satisfaction and qualitative responses identified the depth and interprofessional delivery as favorable. Qualitative data identified opportunities to enhance content and learning design. Overall knowledge gains were statistically significant (mean difference 5%), with the greatest gains related to the evidence base (mean difference 2.67%). Self-efficacy ratings increased significantly after each session. Participants noted changes to team function and a willingness to consider practice changes as a result of the training. The findings support the effectiveness of this interprofessional, EBP training program on falls prevention practices in a PACE and highlight the value of a multifaceted assessment and iterative development.

Perspectives of partners of mothers who experience mental distress in the postnatal period: A systematic review and qualitative evidence synthesis

ObjectiveTo offer insight and understanding on the perspectives of the partners of mothers who experience postnatal mental distress. BackgroundPartners have an important role in identifying postnatal mental distress, supporting the mother, and encouraging help-seeking behaviours that may help reduce the associated long-term consequences on the mother and baby. DesignA qualitative evidence synthesis. Data sourcesMedline, CINAHL, EMBASE, Maternity and Infant Care, PsycINFO and Scopus were searched from their foundation to May 2017 and updated again in April 2019. Review methodsA total of 2928 studies were retrieved. Studies were screened for inclusion and included studies were assessed for methodological quality using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme quality assessment tool. Study characteristics and findings were extracted and analysed using thematic synthesis methods. ResultsTwenty-five studies between 1998 and 2018, involving 270 partners from seven countries were included. Four main themes and nine associated subthemes were identified. These main themes were Knowledge, Relationships, Personal Impact and Disclosure. ConclusionsThis qualitative evidence synthesis provides clear, nonbiased findings on the perceptions of partners of mothers who experience postnatal mental distress. Partners lacked knowledge on how to identify postnatal mental distress and how to access help. The distress impacted on their relationship with the mother and baby, their health and raised questions about disclosure. RelevanceThe findings from this synthesis will contribute to the development of responsive care for families when a mother experiences postnatal mental distress.

Community-based health promotion about alcohol and other drugs in a multicultural Australia-what works? A review of evidence.

Refugee and migrant communities from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in Australia experience dependency, stigma, isolation, mental health issues, family issues and other problems associated with alcohol and other drugs. Yet, refugee and migrant communities also face major linguistic, cultural and technological barriers to health promotion about drug-related problems. The aim of this review is to identify effective techniques and approaches for health promotion that reduces the risk of problems with drugs in culturally and linguistically inclusive ways. To identify what is effective, the Medline/PubMed database was systematically searched for health promotion literature published between 2008 and 2018. Grey literature from relevant agencies was also searched. The review considered both quantitative and qualitative outcome measures, and assessed studies using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme quality assessment tool. Three studies met inclusion criteria, with weak evaluations. The studies demonstrated effective community engagement, but do not provide conclusive evidence of what is effective drug-related health promotion. The review's findings point to an important knowledge gap. More rigorous research and evaluation are required to identify effective health promotion for reducing drug-related issues with a larger, more diverse range of refugee and migrant communities.

A Mixed-Methods Evaluation to Measure 4-H STEM Program Quality

The 4-H Science: Building a 4-H Career Pathway Initiative was a 3-year collaboration among National 4-H Council, Lockheed Martin, and state 4-H grantees to help more than 50,000 youth in 13 states develop STEM and workforce skills for STEM professions. A mixed-methods design used observations and interviews to assess program quality. Researchers observed 4-H STEM programming and conducted individual and focus group interviews with youth, parents, community volunteers, corporate volunteers, and professionals. Observations were conducted using a validated observational tool, the Out-of-School Time (OST) Observation Instrument with STEM Plug-In. This instrument measured youth relationship building, youth participation, staff relationship building, staff instructional strategies, activity content and structure, and STEM instruction. Findings from the observations and interviews were combined to assess program quality. Sites scoring highest on the OST Observation Instrument reported using quality STEM curriculum, especially National 4-H Youth Science Day lessons. The 4-H STEM programs demonstrated highly evident and consistent youth relationship building (e.g., being friendly and collaborative) and youth participation (e.g.., contributing ideas and taking leadership). Yet, in many cases, STEM youth skill development (e.g., drawing connections to real-world concepts) and STEM staff instructional practices (e.g., discussing how youth could pursue STEM content through their education and/or career) were inconsistent and rarely evident. Recommendations include substantive professional and volunteer development for both STEM competencies and enhanced youth development. The OST Observation Instrument with STEM Plug-In provided a comprehensive tool to evaluate program quality, and it is recommended for use in evaluating other 4-H STEM programs.

Using Discourse Analysis to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Financial Counseling

This article describes the unique benefits of discourse analysis, a qualitative sociolinguistic research methodology, for evaluating financial literacy counseling. The methodology is especially promising for organizations that may lack the resources to implement “gold standard” large scale, randomized, experimental, or quasi-experimental longitudinal designs. We begin with an overview of problems with program evaluation research on financial literacy interventions, particularly for smaller community service agencies. We lay out the advantages of discourse analysis as an alternative method of assessing program quality. We include a pilot study demonstrating the use of the research approach, and we conclude the description of this study with specific guidelines as to “best practices” indicated from the results. We believe discourse analysis has the potential to make data collection and analysis easier and more effective for counselors and agency staff at community service organizations, especially when the work of program evaluation is being done by the service providers themselves and the client needs may be atypical, complex, or very specific.

Physical restraint of children and adolescents in mental health inpatient services: A systematic review and narrative synthesis.

Physical restraint is regularly used in children and adolescent mental health care, often as a reactive behaviour management strategy. Physical restraint has been associated with physical injury, but psychological consequences are poorly understood. The aim of this systematic review was to examine physical restraint of children and adolescents in inpatient mental healthcare services. Healthcare databases were searched to identify English language publications discussing anyone aged ≤18 years who had experienced physical restraint as a mental health inpatient. No date restrictions were applied. Sixteen quantitative studies are included within this review. Most studies are retrospective in nature. Publications were appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme quality assessment tool. Common characteristics associated with children and adolescents who experience physical restraint include age, gender, diagnosis, and history. Most studies associate physical restraint with the management of aggression. Findings suggest that it may be a combination of patient (intrinsic) and environmental (extrinsic) factors which ultimately lead to children and adolescents experiencing restraint. This review confirms that little is known about children and adolescents’ first-hand experiences of physical restraint. Future research should address children and adolescents’ perceptions and first-hand experiences of physical restraint.

Consumers can learn and can forget – Modeling the dynamic decision procedure when watching TV

Facing the challenge of attracting consumers and winning market share under the proliferation of TV stations and channels, the traditional TV stations often make some marketing strategies. However, how to evaluate the effectiveness of different strategies and select the best one is a key issue. This study proposes to resolve this problem. We develop an innovative structural model to simulate the dynamic choices consumers make under two interactive behaviors: learning and forgetting. Learning behavior refers to updating programme quality assessment by using experience, while forgetting behavior prevents the use of previous experience. The Bayesian rules are employed to model learning behavior, and they are extended by incorporating an exponential decay function to measure the effect of forgetting behavior. The structural model is tested and validated by using Hong Kong television viewing data. The empirical results show that when modeling consumer choice decisions, considering learning and forgetting behavior significantly improves the performance of the model in regard to rating prediction and marketing strategy evaluation. Five cases are simulated to show how the model is used to evaluate marketing strategies. Managerial implications are then discussed to guide the decision-making of traditional TV broadcasters and advertisers.

Increasing Capacity for Farm to Early Care and Education in Maryland and Washington: Study Protocol

Abstract Objectives Farm to early care and education (farm to ECE) incorporates local food purchasing; on-site gardens; and food, nutrition, and agriculture education into ECE settings to advance child health and well-being, engage families and communities, and enhance ECE quality. This project aims to advance capacity for farm to ECE training and implementation in Maryland and Washington by (1) measuring uptake and sustainability of farm to ECE activities at two demonstration sites; and (2) testing the feasibility of a train-the-trainer model, which includes training professionals who offer technical assistance to ECE providers to incorporate farm to ECE into existing training models. Methods For this demonstration study, researchers will work in partnership with each site to determine interests, needs, and capacity and develop a plan for integrating farm to ECE activities. Evaluation will consist of process and outcome components, including: (1) Semi-structured interviews with site administrators and educators to determine site needs and priorities (pre), progress and on-going needs (mid) and feedback on process, challenges, successes, and program sustainability (post); and (2) pre and post implementation assessment of ECE program quality (e.g., child nutrition, family engagement, learning environment). For the train-the-trainer model, researchers will utilize pre, post, and follow up surveys to assess changes in knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy regarding delivery and implementation of farm to ECE activities and participant uptake and implementation of training content. Results N/A. Conclusions Farm to ECE has the potential to promote healthier ECE environments and healthier community food systems. This project aims to examine impacts of expanding farm to ECE through state training and individual site level activities, with the goal of identifying best practices to support expansion of sustained and comprehensive farm to ECE initiatives. Funding Sources Bloomberg American Health Initiative Collaboration Awards; Lerner Center for Public Health Promotion, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Helminth infections, atopy, asthma and allergic diseases: protocol for a systematic review of observational studies worldwide

IntroductionChildhood infections, particularly those caused by helminths are considered to be important environmental exposures influencing the development of allergic diseases. However, epidemiological studies focusing on the relationship between helminth infections...

On the quality indicators of automated control systems software

The subject of the research is the process of developing automated control systems software. The object of the research is the quality control system of this process. The regulatory documents establish a list of the main characteristics of program quality assessment, which, as practice has shown, does not fully meet its purpose, providing not quality control, but verification of the compliance of programs with the customer's requirements formulated in the terms of reference. One of the reasons for this lies in the impossibility of evaluating exclusively quantitative indicators of the quality of systems, including both technical means and a person. An attempt to use world practice, for example, relatively successful quality models from the ISO / IEC 25000: 2014 standards have not yet been implemented: the model itself is allowed to be used by regulatory documents (GOST R ISO / IEC 25010-2015), but the quality indicators described in it are not accepted. Private improvements to existing methods do not solve the problem systematically. The article uses general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis. Based on the analysis of existing approaches to assessing the quality of software development, proposals for improving this process are synthesized.The article formulates a scientific and practical problem and offers one of the approaches to its solution, based on the refinement of existing methods for assessing quality based on the model described in GOST R ISO / IEC 25010, taking into account the real needs of users, interpreted through reducing the likelihood of errors of the first and second kind arising from the use of software. The solution of the formulated problem will provide a general increase in the efficiency of automated control through the use of quantitative and qualitative assessments of the software being developed.

Validation of the american quality assessment model and performance improvement to the brazilian transplant.

Objective:To validate the quality assessment and performance improvement instrument of US transplant programs to the Brazilian reality.Method: Methodological study developed for semantic validation and cultural adaptation of the Quality assessment and Performance Improvement instrument in the following steps: 1) translation; 2) synthesis; 3) back translation; 4) review by expert committee; 5) pretest and 6) content validation. To evaluate the agreement between the five judges, the Kappa coefficient was used and for content validation, the content validation index. Results: Kappa coefficient showed the agreement of the judges for semantic, idiomatic, cultural and conceptual equivalences. Content validation index values for relevance and item sequence of at least 0.80 for all blocks. Conclusion: The instrument of Quality Evaluation and Performance Improvement of Transplantation Programs proved to be valid and reliable. This instrument will contribute to the development of quality assurance programs for transplant teams in Brazil.

ПРЕДМЕТНА ОБЛАСТЬ ПІДГОТОВКИ УПРАВЛІНЦІВ ДЛЯ СИСТЕМИ ВИЩОЇ ОСВІТИ

In the article we investigated the approaches to training managers of educational sphere in the system of higher education of independent Ukraine, analyzed the legal and regulatory framework that defines the branch of knowledge, speciality, subject area for any educational program Training of specialists in the higher education system. It was found out that in the provisions of normative documents of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (order from 06.11.2015 no 1151), in tables of the list of specialities on which was carried out training of specialists in higher educational establishments Educational qualification levels of specialist and Master (List 2), and the list of fields of knowledge and specialties, which are trained for applicants of higher education, approved by the Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of 29 April 2015 no 266 ( List 2015), for the specialty "management of educational institution (by type)" 8.18010020 subject area defined in such a way that it is clearly referred to the field of knowledge 07 "Management and Administration" of the specialty 073 "Management". Changing the subject area has led to changing legal grounds for educational activities, which in turn resulted in the actual curtailment of managers ' training for the educational sphere. Based on the recommendations of the International Standard Classification of Education: Education and Training in 2013 (MSKO-G 2013), in the study, within the framework of this article, an examination of the content of the educational Scientific Program "management of a higher education institution" and proved, that according to substantive content, it should be attributed to the field of Knowledge 01 education/pedagogy in speciality. Only under these conditions can the educational program meet the criteria (2.3.) Of the quality assessment of the educational programs defined by the National Agency for Quality Assurance of Higher Education, in particular: "... the content of the educational program corresponds to the subject area defined for its specialty" and can be accredited.

ОЦІНКА ЯКОСТІ СТРАТЕГІЇ РОЗВИТКУ ТУРИСТИЧНОЇ ГАЛУЗІ РЕГІОНІВ УКРАЇНИ

Статтю присвячено оцінці якості стратегій розвитку туристичної галузі регіонів України. Досліджено особливості туристичного потенціалу регіонів України, який сприяє розвитку туристичної галузі як у регіонах, так і в країні у цілому. Дослідивши стратегії розвитку туристичної галузі в різних регіонах України, дано їх оцінку за моделлю оцінки якості програм розвитку туристичної галузі в регіонах України. Проведено аналіз оцінки програм розвитку туристичної галузі регіонів України та методом експертного оцінювання за допомогою середньоарифметичної визначено загальну інтегральну оцінку якості регіональних програм розвитку туристичної галузі регіонів України. Найбільш дієвим механізмом вирішення нагальних проблем у регіонах країни є програмно-цільовий підхід, який полягає у їх вирішенні за допомогою запланованих заходів, котрі мають чіткий адресний характер і забезпечені необхідними ресурсами.

Barriers and enablers to monitoring and deprescribing opioid analgesics for chronic non-cancer pain: protocol for a qualitative evidence synthesis using the Theoretical Domains Framework

IntroductionThe over-prescription and overuse of opioid analgesics for chronic non-cancer pain (CNCP) is a growing issue. Synthesis of evidence about the barriers and enablers to reducing long-term opioid prescribing and...

An assessment of program evaluation methods and quality in Australian prevention agencies.

This study aimed to examine evaluation methods and quality in Australian health promotion agencies and the factors associated with this. The evidence base for prevention strategies is limited, with the evidence generated through program evaluation by health promotion and disease prevention agencies lacking rigour. Despite the need to improve the quality of evaluation, there is limited evidence of what influences evaluation quality in the prevention field. Data were collected using the Evaluation Practice Analysis Survey and an audit and appraisal of evaluation reports. Descriptive analysis was used to examine evaluation characteristics and multivariable regression was used to explore the association between evaluation and organisational attributes and evaluation quality. In total, 392 evaluation reports were reviewed from 78 government and non-government agencies. Process evaluation was conducted most frequently, followed by impact evaluation. Overall evaluation quality was low (median 24.5%). In multivariable regression analysis, only two factors were associated with evaluation quality: health promotion budget (ratio of geometric means 1.53 [95% CI 1.02-2.29]); and, conducting statewide or national prevention programs (1.38 [95% CI 1.05-1.82]). The findings show that thepotential to improve evaluation quality is greatestin smaller organisations that deliver health promotion at a local or regional scale. SO WHAT?: By improving the rigour of existing evaluation, there is opportunity to build the evidence base for prevention strategies, which highlights the importance of embedding the enablers of program learning and evidence generation within health promotion and prevention organisations.

Prevalence and risk factors for food allergy in older people: protocol for a systematic review

IntroductionStudies suggest that the prevalence of food allergy may be increasing worldwide. Results regarding the prevalence and features of adverse food reactions older people have, however, scarcely been analysed in...

Implementation of a surgical safety checklist for dental implant surgeries in a prosthodontics residency program

Statement of problemSurgical safety checklists are commonly used in medical surgery to reduce errors, yet they are rarely used in the dental office. Presently, research on the implementation of surgical safety checklists in implant dentistry and user adherence is lacking. PurposeThe primary purpose of this quality assessment study was to evaluate user compliance by using a surgical safety checklist for dental implant surgeries in a postgraduate prosthodontics program at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine. The secondary purpose was to identify and analyze the nature, number, and frequency of omitted items on the surgical safety checklist. Material and methodsAll surgical safety checklists completed by 8 prosthodontic residents from 120 dental implant surgeries over the course of 1 academic year were collected as part of the program's quality assessment. Each surgical safety checklist contained 12 preoperative items and 14 postoperative items, giving a total of 26 items to be analyzed for each dental implant surgery. The collected data were then analyzed for user compliance, as well as the nature, number, and frequency of omitted items. ResultsSurgical safety checklists from 120 dental implant surgeries encompassing 262 implants were accessed for the academic year cycle from July 2017 to June 2018. There were 6 additional dental implant surgeries whose checklists were inaccessible. There was a 100% compliance rate for surgical safety checklist completion by all 8 prosthodontic residents across 120 dental implant surgeries. Within the checklists, the rate of incomplete responses or omissions was 2.4% (n=77). The 5 most commonly omitted items on the checklist by residents were preoperative photographs (0.29%), postoperative analgesics or steroids (0.26%), preoperative oral antiseptic rinse (0.22%), postoperative prescriptions (0.19%), and signed prosthodontic treatment plan forms (0.16%). ConclusionsThere was excellent compliance with the implemented dental implant surgical safety checklist across 8 prosthodontic residents, and the number of omitted items was small. Surgical safety checklists appear to be a straightforward method of helping prosthodontic residents in their dental implant surgical training to provide consistent and high-quality safe treatment for patients.