Background Cooperative interdisciplinary patient care is a modern healthcare necessity. While various medical and surgical disciplines have independent educational requirements, a system-wide simulation-based curriculum composed of different disciplines provides a unique forum to observe the effect of interdisciplinary simulation-based education (IDSE). Our hypothesis: IDSE positively affects intern outlook and attitudes towards other medical disciplines. Methods Using an established interdisciplinary simulation curriculum designed for first year interns, we explored the relative effect of IDSE on between-discipline intern attitudes in a convergent, parallel, mixed-methods study. Data sources included novel pre-post anonymous survey measurements (10-point Likert scale), focus groups, direct observations, and reflective field notes. This quasi-experimental pilot study was conducted at an academic, tertiary care medical center with two cohorts of interns: one exposed to IDSE and one exposed to an independent within-discipline simulation curriculum. Results IDSE exposed interns demonstrated statistically significant improvements when comparing mean pre-test and post-test score differences in five of seven areas: perceived interdisciplinary collegiality ( = 0.855; p = 0.0002), respect ( x̅ = 0.436; p = 0.0312), work interactions ( = 0.691; p = 0.0069), perceived interdisciplinary attitudes ( x̅ = 0.764; p = 0.0031), and comfort in interdisciplinary learning ( x̅ = 1.164; p < 0.0001). There were no changes in interdisciplinary viewpoints observed among non-IDSE interns. IDSE interns were comfortable when learning with interns of different disciplines and believed others viewed their discipline positively compared to non-IDSE interns. Qualitative data uncovered the following themes related to the impact of IDSE including: 1) Relationship building, 2) Communication openness, 3) Attitude shifting, and 4) Enhanced learner experience. Conclusions IDSE positively influenced intern outlook on and attitudes towards other medical disciplines. This unique learning environment provided interns an opportunity to learn clinical case management while learning about, from, and with each other; subsequently breaking traditional discipline-specific stereotypes and improving interdisciplinary relations. Future explicit focus on IDSE offers opportunity to improve interdisciplinary interactions and patient care.

Patients with dementia and their caregivers need ongoing educational and psychosocial support to manage their complex diagnosis. This mixed methods study evaluated the impact of a memory clinic with an embedded dementia navigator on the experiences and health outcomes of patients with dementia and their caregivers. At the 12-month follow-up, patients receiving memory clinic services ( n = 238) had higher emergency department visits than a matched cohort with dementia ( n = 938), although hospitalizations did not differ. Patient quality of life and caregiver burden scores also did not differ between baseline and 12-months. Interviews revealed that caregivers ( n = 12) valued the educational and social support components of the memory clinic and perceived that the clinic had a positive impact on their experiences. Findings suggest that this embedded navigator model is useful for addressing caregiver needs and may have potential to stem increases in caregiver burden and patient quality of life that occur with disease progression.

Universities typically offer residential students a variety of fast-food dining options as part of the student meal plan. When residential students make fast-food purchases on campus there is a digital record of the transaction which can be used to study food purchasing behavior. This study examines the association between student demographic, economic, and behavioral factors and the healthfulness of student fast-food purchases. The 3781 fast-food items sold at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte from fall 2016 to spring 2019 were given a Fast-Food Health Score. Each student participating in the university meal plan was given a Student Average Fast-Food Health Score; calculated by averaging the Fast-Food Health Scores associated with each food and beverage item the student purchased at a fast-food vendor, concession stand, or convenience store over a semester. This analysis included 14,367 students who generated 1,593,235 transactions valued at $10,757,110. Multivariate analyses were used to examine demographic, economic, and behavioral factors associated with Student Average Fast-Food Health Scores. Being of a low income, spending more money on fast-food items, and having a lower GPA were associated with lower Student Average Fast-Food Health Scores. Future research utilizing institutional food transaction data to study healthy food choices is warranted.

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This is a repository copy of Methodology for the development of a national Dental Practice-Based Research Network survey on dentist's beliefs and behaviors concerning antibiotic prophylaxis.