Pilot Study: Thinking Outside the Square in Cultivating "Soft Skills"-Going beyond the Standard Optometric Curriculum

Learning professionalism using creativity and diversity concepts

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Professionalism is a multidimensional sociocultural construct that is abstract, evolving and context-dependent in nature. This has made the teaching and assessment of professionalism in healthcare complex and challenging. A lack of professionalism can increase patient risk and litigation.

BACKGROUND

This article examines group creativity and diversity across healthcare and non-healthcare disciplines and how they can assist students in constructing their own understandings and knowledge of professionalism. It is proposed that linking professionalism to creativity will improve understanding on how to help students studying healthcare learn about professionalism better.

METHODS

A total of 30 students from different tertiary levels and across disciplines participated in the study. They explored either a gallery or museum and examined an artefact relating to professionalism. Learning experiences were evaluated via survey results and thematic analyses of their reflective essays and semi-structured interviews.

RESULTS

Participants reported increased understanding of professionalism and appreciation of perspectives and skills of others. The creative aspect of the task was fun and engaging, and group diversity enabled different opinions and perspectives to be heard and shared. This is analogous to a professional working environment. Themes generated from the essays were: (a) intrinsic motivation, (b) diversity, (c) learnings of professionalism, and (d) challenge encountered.

CONCLUSION

The results of this research make a meaningful contribution to existing literature by empirically demonstrating that students from different disciplines could better construct their own understandings of professionalism when their learning activities were performed in an authentically creative and diverse setting. This educational concept is underpinned by diverse types of creativities that are not mutually exclusive. It is hoped that this first piece of evidence will stimulate more studies on utilising group creativity and diversity in healthcare education.

Improving optometry student interpersonal skills through online patient, clinician and student evaluation and feedback

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Interpersonal skills are crucial for successful clinician-patient interactions. To prepare future optometrists for clinical practice, pedagogical evaluation is important to support the implementation of new strategies for teaching and evaluating interpersonal skills.

BACKGROUND

Optometry students largely develop their interpersonal skills through in-person patient interactions. Telehealth is increasing, yet strategies to develop the interpersonal skills of students for teleconsulting have not been explored. This study aimed to assess the feasibility, effectiveness and perceived usefulness of an online, multisource (patients, clinicians and students) evaluation and feedback program for developing interpersonal skills.

METHODS

Via an online teleconferencing platform, optometry students (n = 40) interacted with a volunteer patient, observed by a teaching clinician. Patients and clinicians evaluated the interpersonal skills of the student in two ways: (1) qualitative written feedback, and (2) quantitative rating (Doctors' Interpersonal Skills Questionnaire). All students received written patient and clinician feedback after the session, but not their quantitative ratings. A subset of students (n = 19) completed two sessions, self-ratings, and were provided with their written feedback and an audiovisual recording from their first interaction before completing the second session. All participants were invited to complete an anonymous survey at program completion.

RESULTS

Patient and clinician overall interpersonal skills ratings were positively correlated (Spearman's r = 0.35, p = 0.03) and showed moderate agreement (Lin's concordance coefficient = 0.34). Student self-ratings did not match patient ratings (r = 0.01, p = 0.98), whereas there was moderate agreement between clinician and student ratings (Lin's concordance coefficient = 0.30). Ratings improved at the second visit (p = 0.01). Patient ratings were higher than clinicians (p = 0.01) and students (p = 0.03). All participants agreed that the program was feasible, useful and effective at fostering good interpersonal skills.

CONCLUSION

Multisource feedback about interpersonal skills contributes to improvement in student performance. Patients and clinicians can evaluate and provide useful feedback to optometry students about their interpersonal skills using online methods.

Awareness of Usher Syndrome and the Need for Multidisciplinary Care: A Cross-Occupational Survey of Allied Health Clinicians

Background

Usher syndrome is the most common cause of deaf-blindness, affecting up to 1 in 6000 people. Multidisciplinary care is required to maximize outcomes for individuals and families. This study assessed awareness of Usher Syndrome amongst allied health clinicians who provide care related to the primarily affected senses of hearing and vision, ie, optometry, orthoptics and audiology.

Methods

A prospective cross-sectional online survey of clinicians working in Australian university-affiliated clinics (7 optometry, 1 orthoptics and 4 audiology) was completed between September 2021 and January 2022. Questions were asked about the cause, common symptoms, and awareness of health professions who manage Usher syndrome.

Results

The 27 audiologists, 40 optometrists, and 7 orthoptists who completed the survey included 53 females (71.6%), had an average age of 37 years (range 24-70), and had an average duration of clinical experience of 13 years (range 1-45 years). The majority of respondents correctly identified Usher syndrome as a genetic condition (86%), identified at least two of the affected senses (97%), and identified the progressive nature of the vision and hearing losses (>90%). Awareness of vestibular dysfunction and its characteristics was low, as was knowledge of the key treatment roles that speech pathologists, genetic counsellors and geneticists play in the management of Usher Syndrome. The majority of respondents also did not identify important aspects of care within their own discipline.

Conclusion

This study has shown that there is a need for targeted education to be delivered to hearing and vision care allied health clinicians to raise awareness of the vestibular impacts and aspects of vision loss experienced by people with Usher syndrome. This education needs to target the broad range of clinicians who have a key role in providing multidisciplinary care (including speech pathologists, geneticists, and genetic counsellors) and to identify the key aspects of good-quality multidisciplinary care.