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Advisory Boards and Usability Testing of an E-Training Program for End-of-Life Care in Prisons

Advisory Boards and Usability Testing of an E-Training Program for End-of-Life Care in Prisons

The 14th Annual Academic and Health Policy Conference on Criminal Justice Health, hosted by the Academic Consortium on Criminal Justice Health, was held virtually on April 8-10, 2021. Susan J. Loeb, PhD, RN, FGSA, FAAN, from the Penn State College of Nursing gave two presentations on research conducted in collaboration with Klein Buendel Senior Scientist, Valerie Myers, PhD. The presentations were titled, “Planning, Maximizing, and Sustaining Advisory Boards to Inform and Facilitate Research in Prisons” and “Usability Testing of an E-Training Package to Enhance Geriatric and End-of-Life Care in Prisons.” 

Planning, Maximizing, and Sustaining Advisory Boards to Inform and Facilitate Research in Prisons 

Dr. Susan J. Loeb discussed working with Advisory Boards for research in prisons. Advisory Boards are comprised of targeted stakeholders who collaborate with researchers to promote cultural awareness, consideration of environmental facilitators and constraints, and the upholding of ethical responsibilities to keep the best interests of research participants at the forefront. 

Effective partnering with Advisory Boards can promote entrée and execution of corrections research and enhance the credibility, relevance, and translation of study findings. The team systematically considered stakeholders who were engaged on Advisory Boards across four previous NIH-funded studies to assess how to promote stability, infuse fresh perspectives, refine the focus of consultation, and extend the array of research settings during an era when in-person meetings were not feasible due to a pandemic. 

Adopting multiple advisory boards with unique foci and constituted by people possessing expertise in a focused area, allows for laser-focused videoconference meetings. While virtual meetings may not afford the same intensive opportunities for relationship building that on-site meetings do, the former does lessen travel-related budgetary, logistical, and time burdens. 

The research team concluded that teaming with and sustaining a diverse array of community stakeholders is a key strategy for generating science that is tailored to address the health needs and promote health equity for people living in prisons. 

Usability Testing of an E-Training Package to Enhance Geriatric and End-of-Life Care in Prisons 

Dr. Susan J. Loeb presented on usability testing and best practices of a full-scale media-rich interactive computer-based learning system for corrections staff in response to the growing population needing geriatric and end-of-life (EOL) care in prisons, which are not consistently adopted. The training is called, Enhancing Care of the Aged and Dying in Prisons (ECAD-P). 
 
The research team conducted face- to- face usability testing of the 6-module ECAD-P training with corrections staff in two rounds at two correctional facilities in different states. The System Usability Scale (SUS) was administered to assess usability and acceptability of ECAD-P. Full scale testing included 173 participants at seven state prisons who completed cognitive and posttest measures and the SUS. 
 
The mean SUS score was 75.10 in the face-to-face usability testing, which indicated a high level of acceptability and usability since a score of 68 is above average. For the large-scale testing, cognitive posttest scores were significantly higher than cognitive pretest scores. At posttest, affective measures were significantly higher than at pretest. The mean SUS score for the full-scale testing was 69.34. 

The corrections environment is not technology-rich; however, prison administration and staff are accustomed to and receptive of computer-based learning (a frequently used delivery platform for mandatory training sessions). Therefore, the research team concluded the ECAD-P product is acceptable, feasible, and usable in corrections.  

The research presented at ACCJH was funded by multiple SBIR/STTR grants to Klein Buendel from the National Institute on Aging (AG049570; AG057239; Dr. Susan J. Loeb and Dr. Valerie Myers, Multiple Principal Investigators). Collaborators on the two presentations also included Dr. Erin Kitt-Lewis, Sherif Olanrewaju, and Katherine Fiochetta from Penn State University; and Jeannyfer Reither and Savanna Olivas from Klein Buendel. 

Pinpoint: A Pain Management Tool for Teens with Sickle Cell Disease

Pinpoint: A Pain Management Tool for Teens with Sickle Cell Disease

Klein Buendel (KB) Senior Scientist, Dr. Valerie Myers, is the Principal Investigator leading a new research project to improve a self-care and pain management tool for teens with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). SCD is the most common inherited blood disorder in the U.S. It affects primarily African Americans and Hispanics. Approximately, 100,000 people in the U.S. suffer from SCD and serious, painful complications can have a significant impact on well-being and quality of life.

Using interactive technology accessible on computers, tablets, and smartphones, the Pinpoint app will combine education, healthy living tips, and tools for managing pain through at-home techniques like relaxation, self-reflection, and a better understanding of the different types of pain teens might experience (acute versus chronic pain).

In a Phase I project, an initial prototype of Pinpoint was developed and reviewed. It included a Pain Assessment Tool, vocabulary game, body scanner reflection, educational self-disclosure activity, and excerpts from the Hope and Destiny Jr. book authored by Hsu, Rodrigues, and Brandalise. Four healthcare providers were interviewed on the app’s acceptability and potential function within the clinical practice. Sixteen teens participated in cognitive interviews, focus groups, and usability testing. The System Usability Scale (SUS; Bangor et al., 2011), a validated tool for assessing the usability and acceptability of technological products, served as the primary outcome. The preliminary SUS score well above average, suggesting a high level of acceptability and usability among users.

The full Pinpoint app being developed in the new Phase II study can be used in healthcare settings to reduce barriers in obtaining information from adolescents by using technology they are comfortable with and enjoy using, while also providing important pain data to healthcare teams and family that affect treatment options. By empowering teens with knowledge and enhanced communication skills, Pinpoint can help reduce emergency room visits and assist SCD teens to transition more successfully to adulthood with independence.

The Pinpoint project is being funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities at the National Institutes of Health (MD010746). It is being conducted in close partnership with the Hilton Publishing Company (HPC), the publisher of Hope & Destiny Jr., a leading book for teens on SCD management. Dr. Myers’ research collaborators include Ms. Mary Buller from KB, Dr. Lewis Hsu from the University of Illinois, Mr. Allan Platt from Emory University in Georgia, Dr. Gary Cutter from Pythagorus, Inc. and the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Dr. Hilton Hudson from HPC. KB’s developers will design and program the Pinpoint app.