A survey of 914 Philadelphia high school students (77 percent response) concerned their knowledge and attitudes toward acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and the health professions. Results showed that most respondents had a good basic understanding of the transmission of the virus but they did not know or understand the health…

Boston's Project ProTech is a private industry council youth apprenticeship program that places high school students in hospitals to explore and train for health care occupations. Success factors include employer participation in student selection and a first-year orientation and job rotation scheme. (SK)

Discusses weaknesses in the system for rating educational quality in medical schools, and suggests ways to enhance the mechanics of the ratings task, the system used to obtain ratings, and factors affecting raters' judgments. The effect of the current health-care environment on ratings is examined, and guidelines are offered for a national effort…

In eight multidisciplinary teams, 50 health care professionals participated in a case-management workshop. Pre/posttest data revealed significant changes in knowledge and more value placed on cost monitoring. These improvements did not vary by type of hospital, profession, or experience. (SK)

At Dalhousie University an interprofessional module on professional ethics was taught to students from eight different allied health professions units. Evaluation by 424 students and 13 facilitators showed they valued learning about other professional viewpoints and issues. (SK)

Describes surveys of potential health-care employers and health-care professionals to identify the need for biomedical informatics programs. Outlines a certificate program, master of science in biomedicine and nursing informatics, and a Ph.D. program. (SK)

Reviews literature on problem-based learning in health sciences. Describes characteristics, outcomes, and implementation strategies and discusses the potential for problem-based learning in nursing education. (Contains 56 references.) (SK)

Responses from 223 of 524 allied health education program directors indicated that 93.5% believe health promotion/disease prevention is an appropriate topic; 66% said it was represented in their curriculum; the level of representation in the curriculum is significantly associated with accreditation requirements; and the most frequently used…

Occupational and physical therapy students (n=78) were assigned to pairs based on learning style (both abstract-experimentation, both reflective-observation, or mixed). On a collaborative exercise, mixed pairs did not perform significantly better than homogenous ones. Pairs' average grades correlated strongly with performance, suggesting that…

The Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire was tested in a group of studies with several populations: 33 mental health professionals; 85 older adults; and 110, 32, and 46 undergraduates. Older adults and professionals knew more about pathological than normal memory aging. Instruction improved undergraduates' pathological knowledge. Instrument…

Explores whether lifelong-learning ideals have been reflected in training provisions for UK health-care workers. Although traditional professional boundaries have been eroded in the workplace, there is little recognition of overlap in initial education and ongoing training of various groups. Continuous learning strategies are recommended.…

Uses the experiences of health care staff in a dementia facility to build a model of workplace learning, based on postmodern scholarship, with these elements: community of practice; dynamic engagement with diversity, power, and discourses; and a context integrated with the wider environment. (SK)

To ensure excellence in distance learning, rethinking of teaching and reordering of academic priorities are essential. Collegial leadership is needed to define purpose and resource commitment, improve teacher competence, and design teaching and learning outcome measures. (Contains 34 references.) (Author/SK)

Presents a lecture delivered in July 1999 at a meeting on Communication in Medicine. Discusses the importance of aligning medical education with societal needs, practice patterns, and scientific developments. Stresses that clinicians must have good communication skills and be able to use those skills in the care of their patients. (Author/GCP)

Replicating a United Kingdom study, survey responses from 11 of 12 Canadian occupational therapy programs indicated that they teach ethics based on standards, rules, and regulations. Moral theory and reasoning are less evident. Today's diverse values and moral perspectives make such an approach inadequate in training therapists. (SK)