Browsing by Subject "skill development"

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    Effect of Caregiver Education Materials on Faculty Preparedness and Confidence
    (2023-05-11) Kendall, Mary; DeRolf, Annie; Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Health and Human Sciences; Threewits, Whitney
    A child’s primary occupation is play. Participation in play is crucial for skill development, including fine motor, gross motor, communication, cognition, attention, and social skills. These skills can aid the child through role transitions, such as the role of a student, where they can support classroom participation and success. In a preschool located in the south-central part of Marion County, faculty identified that out of 157 Burmese students enrolled in 2021, 40 were diagnosed with either Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or developmental delay with characteristics of ASD (S. Keller, personal communication). During the needs assessment process of the doctoral capstone, decreased preparedness, lack of time, and lack of resources were identified by faculty as barriers to addressing developmental delays with refugee learners’ caregivers. Research supports the use of caregiver education, community programming, and communication between teachers and caregivers to improve executive function, play skills, and learning in students. The purpose of the capstone project was to increase faculty preparedness and confidence in discussing developmental delays and at-home skill development with caregivers. The doctoral capstone student wrote and visually recorded materials that faculty can provide to caregivers; materials were translated into languages frequently used in the township to improve accessibility. The program evaluation post-survey supported the use of these materials, as faculty reported increased satisfaction with the resources available to them and increased preparedness to discuss developmental delays with caregivers.
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    Enhancing the Prospects for Palliative Care at the End of Life: A Statewide Educational Demonstration Project to Improve Advance Care Planning
    (Cambridge, 2016-12) Litzelman, Debra K.; Cottingham, Ann H.; Griffin, Wilma; Inui, Thomas S.; Ivy, Steven S.; Department of Medicine, IU School of Medicine
    Although patients want to participate in discussions and decisions about their end-of-life care, studies show that providers frequently fail to invite them to explore advanced care preferences or goals for living. The purpose of our demonstration project was to provide education and coaching to individuals, health providers, and organizations across the state of Indiana intended to facilitate these conversations, documenting and honoring individuals' life goals and preferences for care during the final stages of life. Education and training engaged community members as well as healthcare providers to: (1) improve participant comfort and facility discussing end-of-life issues; (2) improve knowledge of healthcare choices, including palliative and hospice care; and (3) prepare all participants to explore and document personal values, life goals, and priorities as well as goals of care. Between January of 2013 and June of 2015, the team educated close to 5,000 participants. Participants' ratings of the quality and perceived usefulness of the educational events ranged from 4 to 5 (using a 5-point scale, with 5 = most effective). Participant comments were overwhelmingly favorable and indicated an intention to put the advance care planning resources, communication skills, knowledge of palliative and hospice care, and personal renewal techniques into practice. Participant motivation to foster advance care planning, discussions of palliative care, and end-of-life conversations was facilitated by the reframing of these conversations as identifying goals of care and priorities for living well during an important stage of life. Successful strategies included helping providers and patients to adopt a broader meaning for “sustaining hope” (not for cure, but for engaging in highly valued activities), developing provider communication skills and comfort in initiating potentially difficult discussions, engaging a new community health workforce who will develop trusting relationships with patients in home-based services, and fostering self-awareness and self-care among palliative care providers.