Development, Implementation, and Outcomes of a Global Infectious Disease Training Course

Abstract

Background: Skilled healthcare professionals are critical for providing quality healthcare for children with cancer globally. Training curricula addressing the knowledge needs in infection care and prevention (ICP) in cancer are scarce. Program description: We implemented a 10-week blended course in ICP. The distance learning had four 2-week modules: Infectious Complications, Quality in Infection Care, Quality in Infection Prevention, and Sustainability, Research, and Dissemination. Each module had pre- and post-tests and weekly webinars. The 2-week in-person learning had lectures, group exercises, clinical observations, hospital and laboratory tours, and ended in an annual conference. An individual project developed during the distance learning was presented in the in-person workshop. Course attendance criteria were English language proficiency and participants’ role in ICP at their institutions. Program evaluation and results: Twenty-two students from 17 hospitals in 10 countries completed the course, developed a project, and answered surveys covering knowledge assessments and satisfaction, and 6-month course and 1-year project follow-ups. Pretest and post-test scores revealed knowledge improvement ( P < .001). Participants rated the distance learning as outstanding (63%) or good (28%); and the in-person as outstanding (87%). In the follow-up survey, graduates felt more comfortable at managing infections and participated more in quality improvement and academics at their institutions. Seventeen participants (77%) took steps to implement their study projects, and 9 were successful. Collaboration and networking of trainees were notable outcomes. Discussion: The ICP course is a resource to improve knowledge, engage graduates in network collaborations, and a reliable model to develop other thematic healthcare global training programs.

Regional adaptation of the education in palliative and end‐of‐life Care Pediatrics (EPEC‐Pediatrics) curriculum in Eurasia

“…Due to the limitation in capturing the clinical impact of improvement in knowledge, this is a common strategy employed in educational research. 47 , 48 Furthermore, the findings represented here relate to a single follow‐up timepoint. Additional monitoring and educational sessions will be needed to confirm the sustainability of identified improvements over time.…”

Cure4Kids: Two decades of knowledge transfer

“…The data in this study concentrated on the volume of usage of the Cure4Kids content, which does not fully describe the value of the educational content and provide insight in the acquisition of knowledge and competencies. Courses deployed through Cure4Kids, with narrow learner pools and measured educational outcomes, have been previously described and shown increases in knowledge and obtainment of competencies 3,4 . Furthermore, future workstreams of Cure4Kids will focus on further investigating the outcomes and impact of the content distributed via the platform.…”

The PRINCIPAL Network: A Model to Optimize Infection Care and Prevention in Pediatric Oncology in the Latin American Region

“…Accordingly, 2017 saw the birth of the concept of a network to address the needs of participants with respect to IC&P capacity building, education, and research. 10 The St Jude Global ID training seminars for leaders. This is a 10-week blended course in IC&P consisting of 8 weeks of distance learning followed by 2 weeks of in-person learning.…”

“…Since its launch in 2017, 10 189 participants have attended this course. Overall, participants showed improved knowledge in topics taught and positive behavioral changes in their institutional engagement.…”

“…[6][7][8][9] In 2017, we initiated an educational program for health care providers caring for children with cancer and infections. 10 The alumni of the first training cohort established a network that remained active after the completion of the course (Fig 1 , Table 1). Here, we describe how this network was built, organized, and sustained.…”