Effectiveness of Interdisciplinary Leadership Training for Early Career Professionals in the Field of Developmental Disabilities

Measuring LEND Core Competencies Using Trainee Follow-Up Surveys

OBJECTIVES

Measuring the value-added impact of Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities and Related Disorders (LEND) training on trainees' leadership and career trajectories is necessary to understand program efficacy. In the current study, we leveraged an existing ex post facto design to develop and test a new measure of LEND competencies and compare outcomes of LEND trainees and comparison peers.

METHODS

We developed the LEND Outcomes Follow-Up Survey using a multi-step, mixed methods process. A series of focus groups and consultations with key stakeholders identified eight important LEND leadership outcomes: (1) interdisciplinary work; (2) advocacy; (3) intersectional approach; (4) systems perspective; (5) life course perspective; (6) leadership; (7) engagement with maternal and child health populations; and (8) research experience. We developed and piloted this novel survey to measure these LEND leadership outcomes. We used data collected from this novel measure and an existing survey that is used nationally by LEND, to compare the outcomes of 43 LEND trainees and 30 comparison peers at two years post completion of LEND training.

RESULTS

We found that, compared to comparison peers, LEND trainees: (1) worked with a greater number of disciplines; (2) were more likely to be engaged in advocacy; (3) were more likely to utilize a systems perspective in their work; (4) were more likely to work with maternal and child health populations; and (5) were more likely to have experience conducting research.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggested that LEND training improves LEND leadership outcomes at two years post-completion of LEND training.

A systematic review of intellectual and developmental disability curriculum in international pre-graduate health professional education

BACKGROUND

Despite the increasing global population of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), this population remains especially vulnerable to health disparities through several factors such as a lack of access to sufficient medical care and poor determinants of health. To add, numerous studies have shown that healthcare professionals are still insufficiently prepared to support this population of patients. This review synthesizes the literature on current pre-graduate IDD training programs across healthcare professions with the goal of informing the creation of evidence-based curricula.

METHODS

Four major databases were searched for current pre-graduate IDD training interventions for healthcare professionals. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis flow diagram and the Best Evidence Medical Educations systematic review guide were used to frame our collection and analysis.

RESULTS

Of the 8601 studies screened, 32 studies were identified, with most studies involving medical students (50%). Of note, 35% of studies were interprofessional. Most interventions utilized multiple pedagogical methods with a majority including clinical experiences (63%) followed by theoretical teaching (59%). Kirkpatrick levels showed 9% were level 0, 6% were level 1, 31% were level 2A, 31% were level 2B, 19% were level 3, 3% were level 4A, and none were level 4B.

CONCLUSIONS

There is a paucity of formally evaluated studies in pre-graduate health professional IDD education. As well, there are a lack of longitudinal learning opportunities and integration into formal curriculum. Strengths identified were the use of multimodal approaches to teaching, including interprofessional approaches to optimize team competencies.

A Quality Improvement Network for Interdisciplinary Training in Developmental Disabilities

Children with developmental disabilities (DD), such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have complex health and developmental needs that require multiple service systems and interactions with various professionals across disciplines. The growing number of children and youth identified with ASD or DD, including anxiety and depression, has increased demand for services and need for highly qualified pediatric providers. Federally funded Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities (LEND) programs across the United States address today's health care shortages by providing comprehensive, interdisciplinary training to providers from multiple pediatric disciplines who screen, diagnose, and treat those with ASD and DD. Each LEND program develops training methods independently, including quality improvement efforts. In 2014, LEND programs began designing and validating common measures to evaluate LEND training. The LEND Program Quality Improvement (LPQI) Network was established in 2016. Participating LEND programs in the LPQI Network administer validated trainee self-report and faculty-observation measures that address skills in key competency domains of Interdisciplinary or Interprofessional Team Building, Family-Professional Partnerships, and Policy. This study reports data from faculty and trainees from 22 LEND programs that participated in the LPQI Network across the 5-year data collection period. The main outcome of this study was the change in trainee knowledge, skills, and attitudes scores in key competency domains across programs. Overall, trainees made significant knowledge, skills, and attitude gains based on both self-report and faculty observation scores for all 3 competency domains. Data demonstrate the value of LEND programs and feasibility of a national quality improvement approach to evaluate interdisciplinary training and systems-level improvement.