University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX.
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center -Department of Family and Community Medicine, Dallas, TX.
Fam Med. 2023 Jan;55(1):45-50. doi: 10.22454/FamMed.55.143409.
Background and Objectives: Despite the significant effects of homelessness on health, medical and health professions students rarely receive formal education in caring for individuals experiencing homelessness. We describe the implementation and evaluation of a novel student-run Patient Navigator Program (PNP) and its prerequisite elective that trains students in patient navigation principles specific to homelessness in the local community.
We analyzed pre- and postsurvey matched responses from students immediately before and after course completion. The survey utilizes the externally-validated instruments Health Professional Attitudes Toward the Homeless Inventory (HPATHI) and the Student-Run Free Clinic Project (SRFCP) survey. We examined differences using paired t tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Students also completed separate end-of-curriculum evaluation forms assessing satisfaction with the course.
After completing the elective, students (n=45) demonstrated improvement in self-assessed attitude towards individuals experiencing homelessness (P=.03), specifically an increase in reported social advocacy (P<.001); and an increase in self-perceived knowledge about (P<.001), efficacy in working with (P=.01), and skills in caring for (P<.001) underserved groups. The elective also received high student satisfaction ratings.
Formal education in patient navigation and caring for individuals experiencing homelessness improves self-assessed preparedness of future health care providers in serving homeless and underserved populations.
背景与目的：尽管无家可归对健康有重大影响，但医学和医疗保健专业的学生很少接受照顾无家可归者的正规教育。我们描述了一个新的学生经营的患者导航员计划（PNP）及其前提选修课程的实施和评估，该课程培训学生了解当地社区中与无家可归相关的患者导航原则。
我们分析了学生在课程完成前后立即进行的预调查和后调查匹配响应。该调查利用了外部验证的工具，包括卫生专业人员对无家可归者的态度量表（HPATHI）和学生经营的免费诊所项目（SRFCP）调查。我们使用配对 t 检验和 Wilcoxon 符号秩检验来检查差异。学生还完成了单独的课程结束评估表，评估对课程的满意度。
在完成选修课后，学生（n=45）在自我评估对无家可归者的态度方面表现出改善（P=.03），特别是在报告社会倡导方面有所增加（P<.001）；并且自我感知的知识增加（P<.001）、与服务不足群体合作的效能（P=.01）和照顾他们的技能（P<.001）也有所增加。该选修课程也获得了学生的高度满意度评价。
患者导航和照顾无家可归者的正规教育提高了未来医疗保健提供者为无家可归者和服务不足群体服务的自我评估准备程度。
