Simulation-Based Approaches for Training Communication and Counseling Skills in Clinical Education in Audiology: A Scoping Review.

Purpose: This review article aimed to obtain an understanding of the positive outcomes and challenges associated with the use of simulation-based approaches for teaching communication and counseling skills in clinical education in audiology as described in the literature.

Method: A scoping review was conducted during October 2023 to identify published journal articles that described how simulation-based approaches were used for teaching or assessing communication and/or counseling skills among audiology students. Database searches yielded 208 articles initially.

Modifications to consent documentation with adults with communication disorders following brain injury: An exploratory study.

Consent documentation for research studies is often inaccessible to people with neurogenic communication disorders following brain injury and there is limited literature on specific modifications for informed consent. This exploratory study aimed to identify effective strategies and modifications to consent processes for adults with brain injury. Using a fictitious research study, we developed a set of Participant Information Sheets (PISs) varying in complexity, presentation format, and communication modality.

Where Trouble Starts: Communication Breakdown in a Complex Emergency Call.

Emergency calls require efficient communication between caller and call taker to establish a need for assistance and dispatch help quickly. Analyzing communication processes at this first link in the emergency medical care chain has important implications for improving the quality of emergency care across the health system. This paper examines an interaction between a call taker and a caller requesting assistance at the scene of a family murder, using a hybrid interactional sociolinguistic approach to analysis.

Lessons From an Exploratory Qualitative Survey on Simulation Opportunities for Clinical Education in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology in South Africa.

: This study explored experiences of simulation-based clinical education in the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology professions in South Africa, a Global South context where research on this topic is limited. In this context, the COVID-19 pandemic brought simulation to the forefront of clinical education as a training solution when in-person encounters were impossible. As these simulation-based training approaches gain traction, with continued use post-pandemic, it is important to understand how they are currently being used so that appropriate support can be offered to ensure their efficiency and success in the future.

Corrigendum: The mental health and well-being of healthcare workers during COVID-19 in South Africa.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.4102/hsag.v28i0.

Experiences on the frontline: Qualitative accounts of South African healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted people's mental health significantly. Frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) were arguably most affected, particularly in low-to-middle-income countries like South Africa. Understanding their experiences is important to inform interventions for social and psychological support for future pandemics.

Audiology Students' Clinical Communication During Simulated Peer Role Play Consultations: An Exploratory Study.

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to describe the clinical communication practices of student audiologists during case history taking and feedback giving using simulated peer role play consultations and to explore whether clinical communication skills outcomes can be achieved through simulated peer role play.

Method: An exploratory, qualitative research design was used for this pilot study. A total of four simulated peer role play consultations were video-recorded, comprising two adult diagnostic audiology case scenarios.

"We are just not sure what that means or if it's relevant": Uncertainty when gathering family history information in South African prenatal genetic counseling consultations.

Uncertainty impacts the process of health communication. The management and tolerance of uncertainty during healthcare discussions have gained renewed focus due to the growing challenge of obtaining and delivering complex health information, and the offer of health services in diverse contexts. Prenatal genetic counseling (GC) provides education, support and testing options for patients and couples facing a genetic or congenital diagnosis or risk during pregnancy.

Considerations for paediatric student-led telepractice in speech-language therapy: A pilot observational study from South Africa.

Background: COVID-19 necessitated emergency telepractice for student-led speech-language therapy clinical practicals in training institutions, with limited preparation and evidence-based guidelines. Beyond the pandemic, practitioners and university training sites are likely to continue to offer telepractice necessitating thorough preparation for telepractice services underpinned by a comprehensive understanding of the complexities involved in online therapy.

Aims: Adopting realist evaluation principles, our aim in this paper was to explore broadly what works and does not work in a set of student-led telepractice sessions in a diverse, resource-limited context.

A balancing act: Non-directive communication, risk perceptions, and meeting patient needs in genetic counseling: A South African case study.

Genetic counseling (GC) traditionally follows a non-directive counseling approach. Although a cornerstone of GC teaching and theory, there has been debate on whether GC is, can be, or should be a patient-led service due to challenges in practice, as well as the advancement and complexity of genetic testing. Personal risk perceptions and patient expectations within particular contexts may further affect how genetic counselors discuss risk information, even while attempting to remain neutral.

A meta-ethnography on the experience and psychosocial implications of providing abortion care.

Rationale: Challenges unique to abortion care have negative implications for access to safe abortion and the psychosocial well-being of healthcare providers. A deeper understanding of the experience of providing abortion care can inform responsive interventions toward supporting abortion providers and strengthening health systems.

Objective: A meta-ethnography was conducted to describe the experiences of providing abortion care and offer broad conceptual implications of abortion providers' experiences on their psychosocial coping and well-being.

The mental health and wellbeing of healthcare workers during COVID-19 in South Africa.

Background: Little is known about the experiences and impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on the mental health and wellbeing of healthcare workers (HCWs), particularly in Global South contexts.

Aim: The authors aimed to explore the experiences of HCWs at different points during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa.

Setting: This study's sample included 621 HCWs from various professions and health sectors who completed the survey during the pandemic peaks of waves I, II and III in South Africa.

Experiences of South African speech-language therapists providing telepractice during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative survey.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated that speech-language therapists (SLTs) make a radical change to provide services to their clients safely via telepractice. For many practitioners, telepractice was an unfamiliar mode of practice that had to be implemented under emergency conditions. Limited literature on SLTs' experiences of implementing telepractice in the Global South during this time is available.

Emphasising Organisational Routine: A Qualitative Study of Patient and Health Professional Experiences of Inpatient Oncology Care.

Background: Although the experience of hospitalisation for cancer management has been widely researched, such research from the African sub-continent is limited.

Objective: This study explored experiences of patient care in a tertiary, inpatient oncology setting in urban South Africa, from the point of view of patients and health professionals.

Methods: In-depth interviews and focus groups were conducted with participants.

Predicting attitudinal and behavioral responses to COVID-19 pandemic using machine learning.

At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions.

To trust or not to trust: an exploratory qualitative study of personal and community perceptions of vaccines amongst a group of young community healthcare workers in Soweto, South Africa.

As South Africa debates the implementation of mandatory vaccination policies to address coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine hesitancy, many adults remain unpersuaded of the need and benefits of vaccination. Several surveys suggest that this is particularly true for younger adults and for those living in low-income communities. Therefore, we sought the views of youth training to become community health workers (CHWs) as a youth group at the intersection of the community and the health system.

Students' Reflections During Training Workshops on Communication and Information Exchange in Audiology Consultations: An Exploratory Qualitative Study.

Purpose: This clinical focus article outlines various communication challenges and scenarios related to information giving encountered by a group of audiology students, as reflected on during a series of communication skills workshops.

Method: We held two online training workshops during which students reflected on their clinical communication experiences and asked questions related to clinical scenarios. Third-year audiology students from a South African university participated in the workshops (17 in the first, 15 in the second).

The application of qualitative approaches in a post-colonial context in speech-language pathology: A call for transformation.

Legacies of colonialism continue to influence the profession of speech-language pathology (SLP) around the world. While there is some literature on ways in which we can decolonise the profession, there is little written on these issues in relation to research and practice in the field. In this paper, we discuss how qualitative approaches can be useful particularly in post-colonial contexts to transform research and practice in the profession.

National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic.

Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g.

High temperatures and human pressures interact to influence mortality in an African carnivore.

The impacts of high ambient temperatures on mortality in humans and domestic animals are well-understood. However much less is known about how hot weather affects mortality in wild animals. High ambient temperatures have been associated with African wild dog pup mortality, suggesting that high temperatures might also be linked to high adult mortality.

Complexities in interdisciplinary community engagement projects: some reflections and lessons from an applied drama and theatre project in diabetes care.

There is a growing interest in using drama techniques and theatrical performance to disseminate health information to lay audiences as part of community engagement projects. This process can be challenging for a number of reasons, however. In this paper, we describe the process and pitfalls of an interdisciplinary project involving the development and performance of a play about diabetes mellitus.

An analysis of the descriptors of acute myocardial infarction used by South Africans when calling for an ambulance from a private emergency call centre.

Introduction: Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a time sensitive emergency. In resource limited settings, prompt identification and management of patients experiencing AMI in the pre-hospital setting may minimise the negative consequences associated with overburdened emergency medical and hospital services. Expedited care thus, in part, relies on the dispatch of appropriate pre-hospital medical providers by emergency medical dispatchers.