Oral Abstracts: 4D

Click on the concurrent session title below to view all of the abstracts for that session. Plenary session information is provided in the online schedule’s session description, and poster presentation abstracts are provided elsewhere.

Session 4D: Innovations in Patient Education: Teaching Tools and Materials Assessment (Invited)

Friday, 23 October 2015, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM, Salon L

4D-1

4D-1: Special Populations as Teaching Tools: the Nebraska Refugee Cancer Cohort Initiative

Shinobu Watanabe-Galloway, Robert Chamberlain
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA

Abstract: Cohort studies can provide hands-on opportunities for training and educating students in public health fields. Students in epidemiology classes commonly see and utilize data from cohort studies, but few learn about cohort development. We intend for this workshop to help formulate our ideas about a new manuscript we are planning. In this session we will describe and discuss our work at University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), including process and outcomes of public health graduate students’ involvement in the Nebraska Refugee Cancer Cohort. Since 2001, Nebraska resettled over 8,000 refugees. 2013-2014, we conducted a pilot project developing a database of 4,500 refugees living in Omaha, NE. To fulfill their MPH research requirement, one student conducted a study to investigate awareness and practice of cervical cancer screening among Bhutanese women and another student investigated health care access among newly resettled refugees. The pilot and student projects were instrumental in acquiring additional funds to build our refugee cohort. Currently, a total of seven students have participated in the cohort initiative and acquired skills in study design; data linkage, management, and analysis; project coordination; and proposal and manuscript writing. Cohort development also provided an opportunity for faculty to gain experience mentoring students in this research environment. To date, students have published two articles and two manuscripts are being developed. Additional students are being integrated into the initiative as we plan to apply for several cancer prevention and control grants. In summary, we learned that when students participate in the process of research project development they learn skills necessary to build research careers. This type of teaching occurs with post-doctoral fellows, but we demonstrated that MPH students are fully capable of working side-by-side with senior faculty in the work of research project development. Relation to Theme: The project abstract illustrates the innovative use of Nebraska Refugee Cancer Cohort, a special population cohort, to educate public health graduate students in the design and conduct of cancer research with an underserved population. Involvement in cohort development provides students first-hand experience they cannot get from complete research studies. Learning Objectives: 1. The participant shall be able to describe at least three of the skills gained by public health Master’s and PhD students by being involved with research project development. 2. The participant shall be able to list at least three benefits provided to faculty mentor of public health Master’s and PhD students. 3. The participant shall be able to describe how a special population cohort can be used to promote learning in an academic setting. References: 1. Jemal A, Center MM, DeSantis C, and Ward EM. Global patterns of cancer incidence and mortality rates and trends. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. 2010. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-10-0437. 2. Morrison TB, Wieland ML, Cha SS, Rahman AS, and Chaudhry R. Disparities in preventive health services among Somali immigrants and refugees. J Immigrant Minority Health. 2012; 14:968-974.

4D-2

4D-2: Application of the Patient Education Material Assessment Tool (PEMAT)

Chasity Walters, Julia Vishnevetsky, Brieyona, Reaves, Jennifer Wang
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

Abstract: Background/Purpose: While readability formulas are critical and widely used to evaluate the reading difficulty of educational material, they ignore other factors known to impact one’s ability to comprehend the information provided. The Patient Education Material Assessment Tool (PEMAT) was developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in 2013 to assess components of understandability and actionability not covered by readability formulas. However, little is known about the use of the tool in clinical settings. To that end, this presentation describes one institution’s experience using the PEMAT. Description: The PEMAT was used to evaluate 78 educational resources (61 print and 17 audiovisual) disseminated through the Patient & Caregiver Education Department of an NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Drawing from a sample of 17 raters, two raters assessed each of the resources using the PEMAT. The percent agreement between each pair of raters for each item on the PEMAT was calculated. In addition, readability assessments were calculated on each text-based resource using two commonly used reading level assessments. Raters’ experience using the PEMAT was solicited and compiled. Evaluation: Average understandability and actionability scores were calculated at 87.63 and 95.56, respectively. Percent agreement between each pair of raters per item ranged from 50% to 100%. Ninety-two percent of raters agreed that the PEMAT was easy to use, however qualitative feedback from raters suggested areas for clarification. Average readability scores were calculated using the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease (68.56) and the SMOG Index (7.28). Usefulness: The PEMAT is a useful supplement to reading level alone in the assessment of educational materials. Feedback generated by this project is expected to improve the clarity of instructions, ultimately improving inter-rater reliability. Further use of the PEMAT by a wide array of users is necessary to best understand how the tool can be used to contribute to continuous improvement of the tool. Relation to Theme: The PEMAT is a tool that can be used to assess patient education materials to ensure their appropriateness for diverse populations. The tool augments traditional assessments (e.g. readability formulas), and is innovative in its role in assessing multimedia materials. Learning Objectives: The participant shall be able to evaluate the appropriateness of using the PEMAT as a component of the evaluation of patient education materials within their healthcare setting. References: 1. Shoemaker, S.J., Wolf, M.S., and Brach, C. (2014). Development of the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT): A new measure of understandability and actionability for print and audiovisual patient information. Patient Education and Counseling, 96, 395-403. 2. Finnie, R. K. C., Felder, T. M., Linder, S. K., and Mullen, P. D. (2010). Beyond Reading Level: A Systematic Review of the Suitability of Cancer Education Print and Web-based Materials. Journal of Cancer Education, 25, 497-505.