Class of 2014 Abstract / Specific Aims: Medication adherence is the extent to which patients take their medications correctly and consistently as prescribed.1 The objective of this study was to assess Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)- preaccredited and accredited schools and colleges of pharmacy for adherence course content in their curricula. Methods: The survey link was sent via email to the Department of Pharmacy Practice Chair, or equivalent, at each institution. The data collected via the online survey included information regarding the details of medication adherence curriculum present at the program. All data remained confidential. Chi-square statistical test was used for analysis to compare hours of adherence education taught in older (in existence ≥ 20 years) versus newer (< 20 years) programs. Main Results: Twenty-eight programs responded among 130 inquiries (22% response rate). Of the respondents, only two colleges of pharmacy offered a course on medication adherence, one as an elective and one as required. Common adherence principles were incorporated into other pharmacy courses with the most common topics being counseling, patient education and communication skills. Older programs taught more hours (> 20 hours) focused on adherence compared to the newer programs, but they did not differ significantly (p = 0.39). Conclusion: Despite the low response rate, the findings show a lack of curricular focus on medication adherence, particularly as an individual course. Further studies are needed to identify adherence training received by student pharmacists, and to evaluate the impact of adherence-focused curriculum components on provision of patient care centered on medication adherence by pharmacy practitioners.

This qualitative study identified school environment practices in designated school districts in a selected region in the state of Texas based on an accreditation visit from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) in the school year 1988-1989 and identified specific elements of positive school environment that were valued by the TEA.

The purpose of this case study was to explore faculty members’ perceptions of the QEP in a public doctoral university with highest research activity. Particularly, the study explored how faculty members perceive the role of the QEP in student learning and institutional effectiveness, the relevance of the QEP activities in student learning and institutional effectiveness, and how faculty members’ involvement with the accreditation process associated with their perceptions of the QEP. The study design was a qualitative single case study and data were collected from the Quality Enhancement Plan Questionnaire (QEPQ), face-to-face interviews, and documents. Findings revealed that faculty members perceived the QEP as an ambitious and important, necessity-driven process that is focused on globalization. Faculty members’ perceptions of the QEP’s role in institutional effectiveness included: (a) emphasizing the university identity, (b) increased reputation, (c) promoting international research collaboration, (d) bureaucracy, (e) cost-effectiveness, and (f) need for institutional conversation. In regards to their perceptions of the QEP’s role in student learning, faculty members believed that the QEP enhanced the curriculum and helped globally oriented students to compete in the workplace. The study findings also indicated that the QEP activities were relevant to student global experiences such as study abroad program and second language learning programs. Faculty members indicated that the QEP is more relevant to their focus on teaching and learning and that their involvement with the accreditation process contributed to a better awareness of the QEP. The findings from this study have implications for higher education quality practice and research.

This study investigates the assessment criteria of Unit Standard 115789: Communication Studies and Language. In general unit standards are registered, standardised statements of expected education and training outcomes including assessment criteria and other regulatory information required by training providers and assessors to train and assess learners under the Skills Development Act of 1998. However, it was found that many training providers and assessors share the view that in the case of Unit Standard 115789, among others, the assessment criteria and their descriptors are generic, vague and non-context specific to the extent that trainers and assessors have difficulty in developing appropriate and reliable assessment tools and instruments that allow them to adhere to the basic principles of assessment, namely transparency, validity, reliability, consistency, practicability, fairness, flexibility and usability. The main concern of the study is that learners will be declared communicatively competent individuals in a variety of professional and industrial environments when in fact they are not. The study traces the origins and development processes of Unit Standard 115789 in order to gain a clearer understanding of the problems experienced by training providers and assessors in the implementation of the assessment criteria. It then proposes a set of guidelines that will assist training providers and assessors to make the assessment criteria more accessible and the assessment processes more reliable, valid and consistent. Finally, it makes a number of recommendations to ensure that the problems of implementation of Unit Standard 115789 currently experienced by training providers and assessors are alleviated.

No description available.

Grounded in practical theology, this project examines the practices of accreditation exhibited by the American Association of Theological Schools, its predecessor body, and its constituent member institutions in order to explicate the evolution of values in accreditation and to map a history of accreditation in theological education in the United States from 1918 to 1968. Examining accreditation history through the lens of practical theology elucidates the ways in which practices inform and are informed by the theologies of stakeholders in theological education. An analysis of practices of accreditation in the early and mid-twentieth century also helps contextualize contemporary practices of adjudicating orthopraxy, both through Association of Theological Schools accreditation and through the work of organizations that support and coordinate professional religious leadership formation for non-Christian communities. Chapter 1 provides background on the intersections of the study of theological education with research in practical theology and organizational behavior; outlines the recorded history of accreditation in theological education; and establishes the method of the study. Chapters 2 through 4 engage different periods of accreditation history by analyzing the information about accrediting published by the Association and quantifying data provided in its publication, the Bulletin. This data is amplified with analysis of cases that reveal particular aspects of accreditation practice as they developed in member schools of the Association, utilizing primary source materials from leaders of the member schools. Chapter 2 examines the Association’s identification and early regulation of “right” institutional practices and situates the Association as both designer and arbiter of institutional orthopraxy. Chapter 3 follows the evolution of the Association’s adjudication of institutional practices and how those efforts are influenced by individuals and member schools. Chapter 4 traces a shift in the Association from expecting conformity to a singular orthopraxy toward embracing a multiplicity of best practices, happening alongside expansions in the diversity of the Association. The final chapter suggests that contemporary administrative practices should be informed by institutional history, and it proposes other implications for the practices of the Association of Theological Schools, its member institutions, and emerging graduate programs for the training of religious professionals in non-Christian religious traditions. / 2023-09-08T00:00:00Z

Accreditation is recognized worldwide as a tool to improve health care quality. In developing countries, the interest in attaining international accreditation is growing despite the considerable resources the accreditation process consumes and the lack of information about its impact on quality of care. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation on health care quality and to explore the contributing factors that affect quality of care as perceived by nurses. The theoretical foundation for this study was based on total quality management theory and Donabedian's model. The research questions for the study examined the impact of JCI accreditation on quality of care and the relationship between quality improvement activities and quality of care. A cross-sectional quantitative design was employed in which a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Participants from one accredited and another nonaccredited hospital in a developing country in the Middle East formed the purposive nonprobability sample that included 353 nurses. The results of a Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test and a correlation analysis indicated that JCI accreditation has a significant impact on quality of care ratings by nurses. Also, multiple regression analysis showed that leadership commitment is the best predictor of quality of care as perceived by nurses. This study may foster social change by encouraging hospital administrators and policy makers, particularly in developing countries, to implement quality improvement programs that will eventually improve the health care system in their countries.

No description available.

The purpose of this study is to analyze medical dosimetry programs in the United States with regard to their assessment data and specific program characteristics. I identified participating programs through the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology (JRCERT) program directory web page for medical dosimetry programs. Once I acquired the email addresses of each program director for all 18 programs, I emailed the program directors requesting their participation in the study. Six program directors responded to the email request and sent all the needed data for the study. The specific data evaluated in this study is assessment data for all four student learning objectives (SLO’s) identified by the JRCERT and program effectiveness data (i.e. certification pass rates, job placement rates for graduates, and attrition rates). I correlated the assessment data and program effectiveness data for each program to look for significance in comparison to the length of time a program received accreditation by the (JRCERT), length of each program academically, and the degree granted by each program. For the variables, I ran a Pearson Correlation and a linear regression, which also provides a significance value for the linear regression. The findings of the study illustrated no significance within the data when comparing it to the specific program characteristics. The study did illustrate some predictability within the linear regression, but did not illustrate any significant linear regression among the data points. This illustrates the dependent variables do not correlate with the independent variables, but are able to explain some of the variability in the dependent variable. Program accreditation is an important aspect for any medical dosimetry program and should be an integral part of the daily mechanisms. Educators need to continually look for ways to improve their assessment endeavors to help improve their programs and student success. Based on the findings of this study, research should continue on assessment data in the field of radiologic sciences and specifically in the field of medical dosimetry with larger population groups.

Background: The Healthy People 2020 goal for the public health system is “to ensure that Federal, State, Tribal, and local health agencies have the necessary infrastructure to effectively provide essential public health services.” To address this goal, Missouri established the first statewide, voluntary accreditation program of local health departments (LHDs) and began accrediting the LHDs in 2003. The purpose of this study was to identify organizational, structural, and workforce factors related to accreditation status of LHDs in Missouri. Methods: Using data from the National Association of County & City Health Officials (2010) and the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services (2012), binary logistic regression analysis was performed to predict accreditation status of LHDs. Likelihood ratio tests were used to examine whether the addition of each predictor added significantly to the model compared with a model including total revenues alone. Adjusted odds ratios (aORs), 95% confidence intervals, the significance level of the likelihood ratio test, and the overall Nagelkerke pseudo-R2 for each model are reported. Results: Having a community health improvement plan (aOR = 6.2), a strategic plan (aOR = 7.9), evaluating programs (aOR = 3.6), being in a region with a high proportion of accredited LHDs (aOR = 5.5), and participating in multijurisdictional collaborations (aOR = 6.4) all increased the likelihood of accreditation. Barriers of time (aOR = 0.1) and cost (aOR = 0.3) were negatively associated with accreditation. Conclusions: Accredited LHDs were more likely to have completed the prerequisites for accreditation and collaborate with other LHDs. These activities help LHDs meet the accreditation standards. In addition, with shrinking budgets, LHDs will need additional financial and technical support to achieve accreditation. Assisting LHDs to find ways to increase the staff is important. Through collaborations with other LHDs, regional or multicounty positions can be created. Also collaborations with universities, specifically colleges or schools of public health, can provide opportunities for internships at LHDs giving practical experience while providing important assistance to LHDs.