84404 research outputs found
Sort by
418
No full textCut coral with yellow tape labled OR IX. Location: Ocean Pierhttps://nsuworks.nova.edu/feingold_images/1420/thumbnail.jp
421
No full textCut coral with yellow tape labled OR IX. Location: Ocean Pierhttps://nsuworks.nova.edu/feingold_images/1423/thumbnail.jp
427
No full textCut coral with yellow tape labled OR XII. Location: Ocean Pierhttps://nsuworks.nova.edu/feingold_images/1429/thumbnail.jp
Does Relevant Work Experience Influence Academic Success? A Retrospective Study of Doctor of Physical Therapy Students
No full textPurpose: Relevant work experience is a factor considered in holistic admissions practices of many health profession education programs. The benefits of observation hours on student career choice and subsequent academic success have been explored. Many programs additionally consider paid work experience as a factor in admissions decisions; however the influence of relevant work experience on academic outcomes is unknown. This study examined relationships between paid physical therapy related work experience and performance in a DPT program. Method: Data from 945 applicants resulting in 191 matriculants to a single DPT program were included. Employment history for all applicants was coded as either directly related to physical therapy or not. Chi square, Mann-Whitney U, and Spearman statistics were calculated to evaluate relationships between physical therapy related work experience and DPT program outcome measures, including admission decision, program grade point average (GPA), academic probation, and National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) results. Results: No significant relationships were found between physical therapy related work experience and DPT program outcome measures. Higher Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores (p=.003, r=.22) and program GPA (p=.001, r=.354) were positively correlated with passing the NPTE on the first attempt. Students who had been on academic probation during the DPT program were statistically less likely to pass the NPTE on the first attempt (p=.001, Phi=.369). Conclusions: Findings suggest that physical therapy related work experience has no influence on academic performance in a DPT program. Admission committees should consider this when setting holistic admission rubrics. Further research should evaluate the potential non-cognitive benefits of relevant work experience for healthcare students
The Effectiveness of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality-Based Simulation on Healthcare Students\u27 Learning-A Review of the Literature
No full textPurpose: Simulation is increasingly used to supplement authentic clinical experiences in preparation for future healthcare students. However, the most realistic simulation experiences are frequently costly, time-intensive, and difficult to scale, especially for programs with budgetary restrictions. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have been proposed as easily scalable tools to provide students with a realistic simulated environment. However, as technology is rapidly evolving, there is a need to understand the evidence surrounding VR and AR\u27s impact on healthcare student learning to optimize the deployment of these technologies and justify the costs associated with implementation. Methods: A review of the literature was performed, and 19 articles were selected for inclusion. Results: While there was strong evidence that students find AR and VR technologies to be engaging, there was a lack of evidence supporting AR and VR’s benefits on basic clinical skills, foundational knowledge, and interprofessional collaboration. Overall, there appear to be mixed results concerning knowledge acquisition, psychomotor skill development, and other psychological benefits compared to traditional learning methods. Conclusions: Future research should examine whether the novelty effect, debriefing, and asymmetric learning opportunities limit AR and VR\u27s demonstrated effectiveness in healthcare education to allow educators to make informed decisions regarding its implementation moving forward
Effects of Mindfulness-based Intervention on Stress and Anxiety in Doctor of Physical Therapy Students: A Prospective Cohort Design
No full textPurpose: The demanding nature of physical therapist (PT) education often leads students to experience very high stress levels, which can negatively impact both their academic performance and overall wellbeing. Mindfulness-based intervention programs have been used to decrease stress and anxiety in the general population. However, there is limited evidence of their use with Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of a brief mindfulness-based intervention on stress and anxiety in DPT students. Methods: Thirty-seven DPT students completed an 8-week mindfulness program, including daily individual mindfulness sessions (10 minutes) and weekly group mindfulness sessions (30 minutes). The Calm application was used as a resource and for tracking compliance with the program. Paired t-tests were used to compare differences in stress, anxiety and vital signs at baseline and 8 weeks. Results: Participants ranged from 22 to 43 years-old with an average age of 24.73 ± 3.81 years (81.1% female, average BMI of 19.90 ± 2.95 kg/m2). The average number of mindfulness sessions completed per week was 3.87 ± 0.46 individual sessions and 4.55 ± 1.57 weekly group sessions. Data analysis revealed a statistically significant reduction in perceived stress (p = 0.001), anxiety (p = 0.001), and resting heart rate (p = 0.015) postintervention. There was no significant change in systolic blood pressure (p = 0.164) or diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.830), and there was a significant increase in respiratory rate (p = 0.022). Conclusion: DPT students who completed between 3-4 individual 10-minute mindfulness sessions per week for 8 weeks were able to demonstrate a significant decrease in stress and anxiety. A brief mindfulness program may be an effective stress-management technique to help improve student well-being and, in turn, may improve the educational experience
Roles and Strengths of Therapeutic Recreation Professionals in Service Provision: A Strengths-Based Approach
No full textTherapeutic Recreation professionals work in healthcare and community-based settings where they utilize recreation and leisure to improve quality of life. Despite their contributions, Therapeutic Recreation often goes unrecognized as an important component of the healthcare team. The purpose of this study was to explore the strengths and successes of Therapeutic Recreation professionals. We aimed to explore how Therapeutic Recreation professionals identify and perceive their roles, and what strengths they use within their roles. Data was collected through 19 individual interviews and eight focus groups with Therapeutic Recreation professionals and analyzed thematically. The theme of “nurturing well-being through leisure” was generated through our data analysis process and was comprised of four subthemes: (1) engaging clients in meaningful leisure; (2) creating programs and spaces; (3) going with the flow; and (4) connecting and building. Our findings highlight how Therapeutic Recreation professionals provide person-centered care to those receiving services by focusing on their strengths, needs and interests. Taking a flexible approach to problem solving allows Therapeutic Recreation professionals to meet their clients’ changing abilities. In doing so, they provide opportunities for clients to experience meaningful leisure while supporting skill development and independence
From Tension to Teamwork: Ombuds-Led Conflict Resolution in Experiential Engineering Education
No full text/= / \u3e/= / \u3e/= / \u3e/= / \u3e/= / \u3eWe explore the pivotal role of the University Ombuds in addressing and mitigating interpersonal conflicts within internship-based Engineering Senior Design Projects at St. Mary’s University. These capstone experiences, which integrate academic rigor with real-world industry collaboration, often encounter challenges such as cultural misunderstandings, communication breakdowns, and imbalanced team contributions. Drawing on qualitative case studies and anonymized narratives, this research highlights how the Ombuds’s neutral, confidential, and informal mediation services provided a structured yet flexible approach to conflict resolution. Through practitioner-based reflections and empirical examples, we demonstrate how the Ombuds’s interventions not only salvaged at-risk projects but also fostered healthier team dynamics, enhanced faculty mentorship, and preserved critical relationships with industry sponsors.
The Ombuds’s approach aligns with Kaizen principles of continuous improvement and supports ABET accreditation criteria, particularly in fostering professional skills such as teamwork, ethical responsibility, and effective communication. By intervening early and impartially, the Ombuds helped student teams navigate interpersonal tensions, clarify expectations, and reestablish collaborative norms. These efforts contributed to improved project outcomes, increased student professionalism, and greater sponsor satisfaction.
This paper contributes to the broader literature on peace and conflict resolution by presenting a scalable, replicable model for integrating ombuds services into project-based learning environments. It is particularly relevant for interdisciplinary and cross-cultural educational settings, where diverse perspectives can both enrich and complicate collaboration. The findings underscore the value of embedding conflict resolution frameworks within experiential learning programs and offer actionable recommendations for institutions that lack a formal Ombuds Office. By bridging the gap between organizational conflict management and higher education, this study provides a compelling case for the strategic inclusion of ombuds practices in engineering education and beyond
Creative Writing for Social Change: Creating Spaces for Cross-Cultural Empathy
No full textAndy Pring is the founder of Creative Writing for Social Change (CWSC), a UK-based organization which connects people across the globe through small groups which share and write about social injustices and issues they have personally experienced. In the post-9/11 atmosphere, Islamophobia exploded on university campuses and in the wider community, even in the UK. At that time, Andy, the son of Christian missionaries, was studying an elective in Islamic studies at a UK university. To combat the ignorance and prejudice which ultimately caused the Islamophobia, Andy and his professor, an Egyptian scholar, became co-chairs of the university’s first Christian-Muslim dialogue group. These weekly meetings over two years taught Andy the power of forming deep and trusting relationships through the process of personal storytelling. After graduating, Andy spent the first part of his career working in counterterrorism. The creation of “in groups” and “out groups” are essential parts of radicalization, justifying terrorism. Counter-radicalization and de-radicalization work to enable the “in group” to humanize the “out group”. The most effective way to achieve this is to develop empathy for those they had been taught to hate. Through storytelling, writers who take part in CWSC share intimate stories about challenges and triumphs from their lives. Told well, stories create empathy with the narrative and the protagonist. When the protagonist is from a demographic that would be considered by the listener or reader to be part of the “out group”, then the false dichotomy of “us versus them” is challenged, undermined and exposed for the fallacy it is. /= / \u3e /= / \u3eThis is the basis of CWSC, creating virtual spaces for writers from the global south and north to be able to meet, listen, interact, and most importantly, share their experiences of social issues and injustices with each other to promote empathy and diminish prejudices