Education and Research Flashcards
Adult learners are often motivated to learn by:
1) The need for new skills
2) Professional standard mandates
3) Desire for promotion and increased salary
4) Changing cultural expectations
a. 2, 4
b. 1, 3
c. 3, 4
d. 1, 4
B 1, 3
Rationale: Adult learning is often a response to current situations and tends to be problem-centered. A majority of adult learners can be characterized as having a readiness to learn and preferring practical rather than academic knowledge. Learning is often motivated by job needs, such as the need for new skills or the desire for promotion and increased salary.
The healthcare facility has established a goal of improving infection prevention competency with hand hygiene among all staff. Which of the following education and training approaches should the infection preventionist (IP) recommend as a priority?
a. Analysis of human factors that may present
unrecognized obstacles for compliance
b. Attending local/state health department
educational programs on hand hygiene
c. Implementation of a mentoring program based on
peer- to-peer instruction and coaching
d. Intensified disciplinary actions for employees who
do not follow hand hygiene procedures
C Implementation of a mentoring program based on peer-to-peer instruction and coaching
Rationale: Hand hygiene is among the simplest and most effective preventive measures to reduce healthcare-associated infections. However, compliance with hand hygiene among healthcare personnel is consistently suboptimal. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s hand hygiene guideline describes the importance of role models. Numerous studies have suggested that healthcare personnel hand hygiene compliance is influenced significantly by the behavior of other healthcare personnel. The IP should emphasize the importance of role modeling to set high standards and to contribute to a culture of safety within a healthcare environment.
Which of the following should be used as a quality improvement measure for infection prevention education programs?
a. The frequency of classes offered through the year
b. The average number of attendees per class offered
c. Summary of pre-/post-test scores for each class
d. Analysis of program evaluation scores for all classes
D Analysis of program evaluation scores for all classes
Rationale: Quality improvement (QI) consists of systematic and continuous actions that lead to measurable improvement in healthcare services and the health status of targeted patient groups. Data is the cornerstone of QI. It is used to describe how well current systems are working and what happens when changes are applied and to document successful performance. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection are helpful in QI efforts. Whatever evaluation methodology is used, the data must be gathered, tabulated, and analyzed to assess impact and make recommendations for curriculum revision before the next presentation.
The IP is asked to provide content for a hybrid education program. This model is most often based on: a. Attendance at a live event with assigned online follow-up activities
b. Combination of online and independent study for a specific topic
c. Independent study with concurrent mentoring from a local expert
d. Self-assessment of learning needs that is used to develop an instructional plan
A Attendance at a live event with assigned online follow-up activities
Rationale: “Hybrid” or “blended” learning is a formal education course in which some of the traditional face-to-face classroom methods have been replaced by online learning activities. Proponents of blended learning cite the opportunity for data collection and customization of instruction and assessment as two major benefits of this approach.
Which of the following situations would be best for the IP to apply just-in-time learning principles?
a. During a 30-minute orientation session for new employees
b. With staff who repeatedly have problems applying infection definitions
c. In a medical staff meeting where surveillance priorities are being discussed
d. For nurse managers evaluating monthly infection trend reports
B With staff who repeatedly have problems applying infection definitions
Rationale: Just-in-time teaching (JiTT) is a methodology that uses feedback between classroom activities and work that students do at home, in preparation for the classroom meeting. The goals are to increase learning during classroom time, to enhance student motivation, to encourage students to prepare for class, and to enable the instructor to fine-tune the classroom activities to best meet students’ needs. JiTT assignments and classroom activities are designed to motivate the students to examine their present knowledge and get ready to modify such knowledge, add to it, and then apply the newly constructed knowledge. These tasks are accomplished as students and instructors work as a team.
A form of interactive training is often preferred among adult learners. However, in some situations a lecture may represent the best approach. In which of the following situations should the IP consider using a lecture?
a. When reviewing accreditation survey results for the infection prevention program with managers
b. When addressing inaccurate data entry of reportable infections by a health data analyst
c. After observing unsafe disposal of contaminated syringes in the Emergency Department
d. When discovering employees with influenza-like symptoms providing patient care
A When reviewing accreditation survey results for the infection prevention program with managers
Rationale: Lectures are used to convey critical information, teach new knowledge and skills, promote reflection, and stimulate further work and learning. In the appropriate context, and assuming a certain quality standard, the lecture is an effective means of teaching. In this scenario, the IP is presenting the results of an accreditation survey, which does not require an interactive approach. Data are being presented, and there is no collaboration or training required.
Programs to build infection prevention competency have traditionally focused on a combination of skill and ability. Today, however, competency may include which of the following additional components?
1) Emotional intelligence
2) Cultural diversity
3) Communication methods
4) Effectiveness within a team
a. 1, 2, 3
b. 2, 3, 4
c. 1, 3, 4
d. 1, 2,
C 1, 3, 4
Rationale: Professional competency has traditionally been divided into two essential components: knowledge and skill. More recent definitions have recommended additional components such as communication, values, reasoning, and teamwork.
The director has requested that the IP summarize the results of an education program presented to five different groups within the institution. The director specifically requests that the method used not only indicate the overall mean score for each group but also aid a simple comparative analysis for all who participated. The best data display technique to summarize these fi would be:
a. A line list
b. A pie chart
c. A bar chart
d. A spreadsheet
B A pie chart
Rationale: A pie chart is a circular chart divided into sectors, illustrating proportion. In a pie chart, the arc length of each sector (and consequently its central angle and area), is proportional to the quantity it represents. A pie chart is best suited for visually representing the overall mean score and allowing viewers to rapidly compare one group to another
Many infection prevention educational programs address behavioral change. To achieve sustainable success following initial training, the IP must focus on which aspect of behavior?
a. Avoidance of behavior change
b. Repetition and reinforcement
c. Need for approval and recognition
d. Critical thinking and judgment
B Repetition and reinforcement
Rationale: Behaviorism is an approach to psychology that combines elements of philosophy, methodology, and theory. Behaviorism focuses on one particular view of learning: a change in external behavior achieved through a large amount of repetition of desired actions, the reward of good habits, and the discouragement of bad habits.
In which of the following infection prevention topics is the required educational content for employees most clearly described by a U.S. regulatory agency?
a. Hand hygiene monitoring systems
b. Environmental cleaning of hard surfaces
c. Active surveillance for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in hospitals
d. Preventing employee exposure to bloodborne pathogen
D Preventing employee exposure to bloodborne pathogens
Rationale: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA’s) Bloodborne Pathogens standard prescribes safeguards to protect workers against the health hazards caused by bloodborne pathogens. Its requirements address items such as exposure control plans, Universal Precautions, engineering and work practice controls, personal protective equipment, housekeeping, laboratories, Hepatitis B vaccination, postexposure follow-up, hazard communication and training, and recordkeeping. The standard places requirements on employers whose workers can be reasonably anticipated to contact blood or other potentially infectious materials, such as unfixed human tissues and certain body fluids.
All of the following are features of well-written research methods sections except:
a. Time period of the study
b. Clear criteria for defining cases and controls
c. Questions the research will answer
d. Methods of quality assurance
C Questions the research will answer
Rationale: Questions the research will answer should be stated in the Introduction section of a research article. The Method section provides a detailed description of how the study was conducted, information on participants/subjects, information on materials/apparatus/measures, and a description of the procedure.
What of the following questions should be asked when evaluating results from a research study?
1) Were the instruments valid for the study?
2) Is this a peer-reviewed research journal?
3) Was the sample representative of the intended population?
4) Do the conclusions prove the hypothesis?
a. 1, 2, 3
b. 2, 3, 4
c. 1, 3, 4
d. 1, 2, 4
A 1, 2, 3
Rationale: Many factors should be considered in critically reviewing an article in the scientific literature. To evaluate articles that report original research, the reader should ask certain questions about each component of the paper. The following questions may serve as a basic guide: • Introduction: Is the study question important, appropriate, and stated clearly? • Materials and methods: Is the study population appropriate and adequately described? Is the choice of study design applicable to the purpose of the study? Are selection and exclusion criteria described? Were outcomes of groups evaluated equally and by persons blinded to the study treatment arm? What were the proportions lost to follow-up in each study arm described? • Results: Are the statistical tests appropriate for the study design? Is the sample size adequate? Are there factors that could have confounded results and were these taken into account? Do the data that are presented in the text, tables, and figures provide an answer to the stated research question(s)? • Discussion: Are the conclusions that are drawn reasonable and justified? Could other explanations account for the observed results?
An assessment of internal validity and the influence of bias can be found in which section of a research study?
a. Introduction
b. Results
c. Discussion
d. Methods
C Discussion
Rationale: Internal validity refers to how well an experiment is done, especially whether it avoids systematic errors. If a study shows a high degree of internal validity, then one can conclude that there is strong evidence for causality. The methods section of a research article describes what procedures were followed to minimize threats to internal validity, the results section reports the relevant data, and the discussion section assesses the influence of bias.
The abstract in a research study must include:
a. A review of the literature
b. A biographical profile of the principal investigator
c. The intent or objective of the study
d. Conflict of interest disclosures
C The intent or objective of the study
Rationale: The abstract is a brief summary of the purposes of the study and of its methods, main findings, and conclusions. A structured approach to abstracts is now used by many journals.
Which of the following refers to the statistical technique that combines the results of a large number of studies?
a. Linear regression analysis
b. Inferential statistics
c. Meta-analysis
d. Axiomatic approach
C Meta-analysis
Rationale: A meta-analysis is a statistical method that combines the results of independent studies. Statistically combining the results of similar studies provides a precise estimate of treatment effect, giving due weight to the size of the different studies included.
