Francesca Luconi

An Innovative Needs Assessment Approach to Develop Relevant Continuing Professional Development for Psychiatrists

Academic Psychiatry, Nov 30, 2021

Objectives Gaps in psychiatrists' competence can interfere with the delivery of optimal patient c... more Objectives Gaps in psychiatrists' competence can interfere with the delivery of optimal patient care, particularly when these gaps have not been identified. This study aimed to assess the perceived and unperceived continuing professional development needs of psychiatrists practicing in Quebec, Canada. Methods The authors sent an online cross-sectional survey (2018) to members of the 'Association des médecins psychiatres du Québec' and collected data on unperceived needs via the critical incident method (focused on managing challenging clinical cases/situations). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-squared tests, thematic analysis, and triangulation of data. Two coders independently analyzed qualitative data. Results Of 1150 eligible psychiatrists, 187 (16%) completed the survey. Over half were female (58%), caring for adult patients (60%), and practiced in a university hospital (49%). Top perceived and unperceived learning need areas were neurodevelopmental disorders and psychopharmacology. Three hundred forty-three factors influencing the management of reported challenges were classified as case complexity (53%), patient (22%), environment (19%), and lack of knowledge (4%). Consultation with colleagues (49%) was the most frequently accessed resource for approaching challenging cases. During the previous year and across both self-directed and group learning activities, respondents reported engaging more frequently in in-person than online activities. Conclusions A comprehensive needs assessment integrating perceived and unperceived needs is the cornerstone for planning relevant continuing professional development. The critical incident method is a useful tool to assess psychiatrists' unperceived needs. Critical reflection after solving complex clinical cases might provide an opportunity to optimize psychiatrists' selection of relevant continuing professional development.

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Patient Safety and Quality of Care are Everybody's Business: Evaluating the Impact of a Continuing Professional Development Program beyond Satisfaction

MedEdPublish, Mar 11, 2019

Background Research integrating Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with patient safety (PS... more Background Research integrating Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with patient safety (PS) and quality improvement (QI) is still in its infancy despite advocacy by leaders in the field. Objectives This theory-driven study explored the feasibility to implement and evaluate the impact of a CPD intervention focused on teaching and practicing PS and QI at the levels of satisfaction, usefulness, knowledge, confidence, intention to change behaviour and reported changes in practice. Methods Three workshops targeting healthcare professionals were delivered live between 2014 and 2016. Data was collected longitudinally through four questionnaires and analyzed with descriptive statistics and triangulation of sources. Thematic analysis of qualitative data was guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework. Results Sixty-seven healthcare professionals participated in the study. Across workshops, satisfaction was high and a significant increase in knowledge and confidence were reported immediately post-intervention. Intention to change behavior was high across workshops. 'Moral norm' and 'beliefs about consequences' were consistently rated as the

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Initial evidence of the effectiveness of a short, online Recovery College Model: a co-learning model to support mental health in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic

Journal of Recovery in Mental Health

Introduction. The Covid-19 pandemic (C-19) has a negative impact on the mental health of the gene... more Introduction. The Covid-19 pandemic (C-19) has a negative impact on the mental health of the general population and in particular, women, people with chronic physical illness or psychiatric conditions, students and health care providers. Targeting these needs, the Recovery College (RC) model offers a new and innovative approach based on co-learning and learner diversity. The model provides a co-learning space where at-risk populations and the general public learn together and collectively equip themselves to better address psychological well-being and mental health issues. Objective. The objective is to present the initial results of the RC co-learning model in a short online format to meet the pressing needs of mental health intervention in the C-19 context. Method. A pre-post research design with repeated measures was used. Results. Results suggest improved knowledge and use of tools to support mental health interventions, self-management strategies, anti-stigma attitudes, and pro...

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Learner Experience of an Online Co-Learning Model to Support Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the mental health of the population such as in... more The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the mental health of the population such as increased levels of anxiety, psychological distress, isolation, etc. Access to mental health services has been limited due to the “overflow” of demands. The Recovery College (RC) model, an education-based approach, has addressed this challenge and provided online well-being and mental health courses to at-risk populations. The RC model proposes a co-learning space in an adult education program where learners from diverse backgrounds collectively learn and empower themselves to better address psychological well-being and mental health issues. The aim of this study was to document the experience of learners who participated in online RC courses during the COVID-19 pandemic and the perceived impact of these courses on their mental health. A qualitative interpretative descriptive study design was employed, and Miles and Huberman’s stepwise content analysis method was used to mine the data for ...

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Family Medicine Forum Research Proceedings 2014/Compte rendu sur la recherche au Forum en médecine familiale 2014

These abstracts have been peer reviewed | Ces résumés ont fait l'objet d'une révision par des pairs

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Courriels Cochrane: a knowledge translation project

Exploring rural family physicians' learning from a web-based continuing medical education program on Alzheimer's disease: A pilot study

Flow chart describing the 4 phases of the development of the instrument

Flow chart describing the 4 phases of the development of the instrument.</p

Item inventory and development of a preliminary set of items

Item inventory and development of a preliminary set of items.</p

Exploratory factorial analysis (12-item final instrument)

Exploratory factorial analysis (12-item final instrument).</p

Assessing Changes in Anxiety, Empowerment, Stigma and Wellbeing in Participants Attending an Online-Based Recovery College in Quebec During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Pre-Experimental Study

International Journal of Public Health

Objectives: The present study aims to evaluate the effect of an online Recovery College (RC) prog... more Objectives: The present study aims to evaluate the effect of an online Recovery College (RC) program implemented in Quebec (Canada) during the COVID-19 pandemic. From October 2020 to June 2021, 27 training groups were conducted with a total of 362 attendees.Methods: Outcome was evaluated using a single group repeated measure design, assessing participants prior the training (T0), after the training (T1) and at follow up (T2). 107 learners of the Quebec RC program attended three two-hour sessions agreed to participate to the research.Results: Overall findings show at T1 a small but statistically significant reduction of anxiety and increase in empowerment, and below threshold reduction of stigmatizing attitudes and increase of wellbeing. Conversely, the medium-term changes at follow up were non-significant for all the outcome dimension except for anxiety.Conclusion: Findings suggest that the RC online program can be considered as a potential effective strategy to support self-regulat...

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Test-retest reliability for the items in the final CPD assessment tool (n = 138 for test and n = 121 for retest)

Test-retest reliability for the items in the final CPD assessment tool (n = 138 for test... more

Profile of international experts who participated in E-Delphi study (n = 70 registered participants)

Profile of international experts who participated in E-Delphi study (n = 70 registered p... more

Expert-Novice Differences in Searching the Web

Three web-user experts and three novices were observed in a problem-solving context. Their task w... more Three web-user experts and three novices were observed in a problem-solving context. Their task was to search and evaluate information on the World Wide Web in order to write a research paper about an unfamiliar topic. A cognitive task analysis and verbal protocols were used. Results indicate differences in the ways experts approach and solve problem. These differences were in terms of (a) knowledge base; (b) problem space; (c) strategies; and (d) affect. Novice-expert differences have instructional implications for teachers, Information Technologists and Web site designers. The Problem The purpose of this exploratory study was to compare three experts and three novices in a web-based problem-solving context. This study differs from other studies on problem solving because the task is open-ended and it also includes problemfinding (Getzels & Csikszentmihalyi, 1975). Our interest in the Web stems from the fact that it has the potential to be a powerful educational tool in that it has...

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An Innovative Needs Assessment Approach to Develop Relevant Continuing Professional Development for Psychiatrists

Academic Psychiatry, 2021

Objectives Gaps in psychiatrists' competence can interfere with the delivery of optimal patient c... more Objectives Gaps in psychiatrists' competence can interfere with the delivery of optimal patient care, particularly when these gaps have not been identified. This study aimed to assess the perceived and unperceived continuing professional development needs of psychiatrists practicing in Quebec, Canada. Methods The authors sent an online cross-sectional survey (2018) to members of the 'Association des médecins psychiatres du Québec' and collected data on unperceived needs via the critical incident method (focused on managing challenging clinical cases/situations). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-squared tests, thematic analysis, and triangulation of data. Two coders independently analyzed qualitative data. Results Of 1150 eligible psychiatrists, 187 (16%) completed the survey. Over half were female (58%), caring for adult patients (60%), and practiced in a university hospital (49%). Top perceived and unperceived learning need areas were neurodevelopmental disorders and psychopharmacology. Three hundred forty-three factors influencing the management of reported challenges were classified as case complexity (53%), patient (22%), environment (19%), and lack of knowledge (4%). Consultation with colleagues (49%) was the most frequently accessed resource for approaching challenging cases. During the previous year and across both self-directed and group learning activities, respondents reported engaging more frequently in in-person than online activities. Conclusions A comprehensive needs assessment integrating perceived and unperceived needs is the cornerstone for planning relevant continuing professional development. The critical incident method is a useful tool to assess psychiatrists' unperceived needs. Critical reflection after solving complex clinical cases might provide an opportunity to optimize psychiatrists' selection of relevant continuing professional development.

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STUDY PROTOCOL Open Access

Developing a theory-based instrument to assess the impact of continuing professional development ... more

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Annual Refresher Course for Family Physicians beyond Satisfaction

A multifaceted continuing professional development intervention to move stroke rehabilitation guidelines into professional practice: A feasibility study

Introduction Rehabilitation post-stroke is critical for maximizing patient outcomes. This study a... more Introduction Rehabilitation post-stroke is critical for maximizing patient outcomes. This study assessed the feasibility of implementing and evaluating a continuing professional development (CPD) intervention aimed at increasing the uptake of stroke best practice guidelines among physiotherapists (PTs), occupational therapists (OTs) and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in six university-affiliated stroke rehabilitation centers in Quebec, Canada. Method Twelve stroke best practice recommendations with reflective tools were sent weekly by e-mail. Participants’ eligibility criteria included: a) profession; b) practicing more than 1 year in a stroke rehabilitation program; c) fluency in French or English; and d) basic computer literacy. Feasibility (operationalized via participation, satisfaction and relevance), cognitive impact, perceived application in practice and expected patient outcomes were measured over 24 weeks using three questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statis...

Patient Safety and Quality of Care are Everybody's Business: Evaluating the Impact of a Continuing Professional Development Program beyond Satisfaction

MedEdPublish

Background Research integrating Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with patient safety (PS... more Background Research integrating Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with patient safety (PS) and quality improvement (QI) is still in its infancy despite advocacy by leaders in the field. Objectives This theory-driven study explored the feasibility to implement and evaluate the impact of a CPD intervention focused on teaching and practicing PS and QI at the levels of satisfaction, usefulness, knowledge, confidence, intention to change behaviour and reported changes in practice. Methods Three workshops targeting healthcare professionals were delivered live between 2014 and 2016. Data was collected longitudinally through four questionnaires and analyzed with descriptive statistics and triangulation of sources. Thematic analysis of qualitative data was guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework. Results Sixty-seven healthcare professionals participated in the study. Across workshops, satisfaction was high and a significant increase in knowledge and confidence were reported immediately post-intervention. Intention to change behavior was high across workshops. 'Moral norm' and 'beliefs about consequences' were consistently rated as the

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Barriers and Facilitators to Self-Directed Learning in Continuing Professional Development for Physicians in Canada: A Scoping Review

Academic medicine : journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, Jan 10, 2018

This scoping review explored the barriers and facilitators that influence engagement in and imple... more This scoping review explored the barriers and facilitators that influence engagement in and implementation of self-directed learning (SDL) in continuing professional development (CPD) for physicians in Canada. This review followed the six-stage scoping review framework of Arksey and O'Malley and of Daudt et al. In 2015, the authors searched eight online databases for English-language Canadian articles published January 2005-December 2015. To chart and analyze the data from the 17 included studies, they employed two-step analysis process of conventional content analysis followed by directed coding guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). Conventional content analysis generated five categories of barriers and facilitators: individual, program, technological, environmental, and workplace/organizational. Directed coding guided by the TDF allowed analysis of barriers and facilitators to behavior change according to two key groups: physicians engaging in SDL and SDL develope...

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