Opportunities and challenges associated with the launch of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir (Paxlovid) in British Columbia during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study to explore community pharmacists' perspectives.

Background: In February 2022, a novel antiviral for the treatment of COVID-19, nirmatrelvir/ritonavir (Paxlovid), was approved by Health Canada and made available to patients in British Columbia (BC). BC community pharmacists did not prescribe nirmatrelvir/ritonavir, but dispensing involved a detailed assessment with close attention to drug-drug interactions and patient monitoring. As the nirmatrelvir/ritonavir service was unique in BC, and not all pharmacists participated in the program, it is important to evaluate the perspectives of all the pharmacists who were affected so that lessons learned from the program can inform future pandemic planning and government initiatives.

Active mutual conjoint estimation of multiple contrast sensitivity functions.

Recent advances in nonparametric contrast sensitivity function (CSF) estimation have yielded a new tradeoff between accuracy and efficiency not available to classical parametric estimators. An additional advantage of this new framework is the ability to independently tune multiple aspects of the estimator to seek further improvements. Machine learning CSF estimation with Gaussian processes allows for design optimization in the kernel, acquisition function, and underlying task representation, to name a few.

Public participation in healthcare students' education: An umbrella review.

Background: An often-hidden element in healthcare students' education is the pedagogy of public involvement, yet public participation can result in deep learning for students with positive impacts on the public who participate.

Objective: This article aimed to synthesize published literature reviews that described the impact of public participation in healthcare students' education.

Search Strategy: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, ERIC, PsychINFO, CINAHL, PubMed, JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and the PROSPERO register for literature reviews on public participation in healthcare students' education.

Health advocacy: A gulf between instruction and practice.

Background: Systematic ways to teach health advocacy, an educational outcome for pharmacy graduates, is lacking. We developed a workshop to facilitate understanding and application of a novel structured framework for health advocacy and explored how pharmacy students enacted opportunities for health advocacy during subsequent outpatient experiential training.

Educational Activity And Setting: A two-hour workshop was introduced for year 2 students in 2019.

Active Mutual Conjoint Estimation of Multiple Contrast Sensitivity Functions.

Recent advances in nonparametric Contrast Sensitivity Function (CSF) estimation have yielded a new tradeoff between accuracy and efficiency not available to classical parametric estimators. An additional advantage of this new framework is the ability to independently tune multiple aspects of the estimator to seek further improvements. Machine Learning CSF (MLCSF) estimation with Gaussian processes allows for design optimization in the kernel, acquisition function and underlying task representation, to name a few.

Contrast response function estimation with nonparametric Bayesian active learning.

Multidimensional psychometric functions can typically be estimated nonparametrically for greater accuracy or parametrically for greater efficiency. By recasting the estimation problem from regression to classification, however, powerful machine learning tools can be leveraged to provide an adjustable balance between accuracy and efficiency. Contrast sensitivity functions (CSFs) are behaviorally estimated curves that provide insight into both peripheral and central visual function.

Pharmacy Students Practicing Health Advocate Competency Roles in Workplace-Based Training.

Objective: Health advocacy competency roles are found in the educational outcomes of many health disciplines, yet their development is neglected in the professional curriculum and clinical learning environment. We explored how pharmacy students conceptualize health advocacy through their practice in workplace-based learning and any feedback they receive.

Methods: We conducted a longitudinal diary study of Canadian pharmacy students completing Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences in hospital and community practices in their graduating year.

Training for Collaborative Care: How Hospital Team Members View Pharmacy Students.

Background: Interprofessional education activities are prevalent across health professional curricula in Canada. Students develop collaborative roles through structured on-campus programming; however, the ways in which established teams engage learners in hospital settings are unknown.

Objective: To explore how mixed-discipline professionals describe expectations and experiences related to collaborating with pharmacy students who join their team for training.

Contrast Response Function Estimation with Nonparametric Bayesian Active Learning.

Unlabelled: Multidimensional psychometric functions can typically be estimated nonparametrically for greater accuracy or parametrically for greater efficiency. By recasting the estimation problem from regression to classification, however, powerful machine learning tools can be leveraged to provide an adjustable balance between accuracy and efficiency. Contrast Sensitivity Functions (CSFs) are behaviorally estimated curves that provide insight into both peripheral and central visual function.

Real Patient Participation in Workplace-Based Assessment of Health Professional Trainees: A Scoping Review.

The aim of this scoping review is to outline the existing landscape of how real patients participate in the workplace-based assessment of trainees across diverse healthcare professions. In 2019-2020, the authors searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, ERIC, and Web of Science databases for studies that included descriptions of experiences whereby patients received care from a health professional trainee and participated in workplace-based assessments of that trainee. Full-text articles published in English from 2009 to 2020 were included in the search.

Reducing health provider stereotypes through undergraduate interprofessional education.

Objective: Stereotypes among health professionals can jeopardize the delivery of collaborative healthcare and the achievement of positive patient outcomes. However, interprofessional education (IPE) can promote early clarification of roles, and understanding and mutual respect among trainees from different health disciplines. We studied the effects of IPE activities on the views and attitudes of pharmacy students toward nurse- and physician-trainees.

Pharmacist trainees narrow scope of interprofessional collaboration and communication in hospital practice.

Early curricular exposure to interprofessional education (IPE) is intended to acclimatize health professional trainees to shared-care in the practice settings they will ultimately join. However, IPE activities typically reside outside actual organizational and social systems in which interprofessional care is delivered. We aimed to explore how pharmacist trainees experience collaborator and communicator competency roles during team-based workplace-based learning.

Symptom and needs assessment screening in oncology patients: Alternate outreach methods during COVID-19.

Patients with cancer are ideally screened for symptoms, including distress, using patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs). This initiative was developed to ensure patients without access to an electronic portal were screened for distress and related symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, these patients could complete screening in clinic.

Team member expectations of trainee communicator and collaborator competencies - so shines a good deed in a weary world?

Background: Workplace-based assessment may be further optimized by drawing upon the perspectives of multiple assessors, including those outside the trainee's discipline. Interprofessional competencies like communication and collaboration are often considered suitable for team input.

Aim: We sought to characterize multidisciplinary expectations of communicator and collaborator competency roles.

Diversity in health professional education scholarship: a document analysis of international author representation in leading journals.

Objectives: The global distribution of health professionals and associated training programmes is wide but prior study has demonstrated reported scholarship of teaching and learning arises from predominantly Western perspectives.

Design: We conducted a document analysis to examine authorship of recent publications to explore current international representation.

Data Sources: The table of contents of seven high-impact English-language health professional education journals between 2008 and 2018 was extracted from Embase.

Substance Use Education in Canadian Nursing Programs: A Student Survey.

Background: In Canada, nursing programs have not kept pace with the growing rates and changing patterns of substance use.

Method: To get a sense of the current state of substance use education in nursing programs, we conducted a survey of nursing students.

Results: Our findings indicate that (a) substance use education is minimal, 1 to 5 hours (43%) or none (20%); (b) students had more working knowledge of legal and prescribed substances than illegal ones; (c) of 22 content areas deemed essential for practice, only seven were covered; (d) students were able to identify statements consistent with a harm reduction philosophy despite limited substance use education; and (e) the majority of students wrongfully believed that illegal substances are more harmful than legal substances.

Views and experiences of decision-makers on organisational safety culture and medication errors.

Background: In 2017, the World Health Organization published "Medication Without Harm, WHO Global Patient Safety Challenge," to reduce patient harm caused by unsafe medication use practices. While the five objectives emphasise the need to create a framework for action, engaging key stakeholders and others, most published research has focused on the perspectives of health professionals. The aim was to explore the views and experiences of decision-makers in Qatar on organisational safety culture, medication errors and error reporting.

Competency-Based Education Frameworks Across Canadian Health Professions and Implications for Multisource Feedback.

Background: Feedback in health professional clinical training is typically the responsibility of the student's own supervisor. However, assessment in competency-based education may be optimized by drawing upon the judgments of multiple assessors. Specific interprofessional competencies have been deemed appropriate for multisource feedback, but these skills may not be uniformly described and therefore performance expectations may differ across disciplines.

Law, Culture, and Fear: A Qualitative Study of Health Professionals' Perceptions of Narcotic Use Related to Cancer Pain.

Studies have shown barriers to appropriate narcotic use in the Middle East have negatively impacted patient outcomes. This study aimed to explore health professionals' perspectives regarding opioid use for cancer patients in Qatar. Eight focus groups were conducted with physicians, pharmacists, and nurses.