Protecting our Own: Using Blended Learning to Push Training Out for Public Health Preparedness &

Disaster Response Efforts

Presented by: Cheryl L. Engle, M.A.

The Ohio State University USA

Introduction

“We certainly live in uncertain times marked by global terrorism, recurring natural disasters, and pandemic influenza” (President George W. Bush, 2003)

Problem Statement

The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (2007) acknowledge that the “…current worker shortages and the graying workforce… can result in a gap in both the leadership and institutional knowledge of state health agencies…” and reiterate the workforce shortage by saying that “…more than 50% of states cite the lack of trained personnel as a major barrier to our nation’s preparedness…” (State Public Health Employee Worker Shortage Report, 2007)

Study Population

Incident CommandersFirst RespondersAmerican Red Cross volunteersMedical Reserve Corps volunteersPublic Health Nurses

Conceptual Framework

Moore’s (1995) Theory of Transactional Distance “…universe of teacher-learner relationships that exist when

learners and instructors are separated by space and/or by time” (p. 22)

Covington and Simpson (2006) Views on Disaster Preparedness Efforts Contend that disaster preparedness, as an area of inquiry, is

dynamic and in a constant state of flux.

Each new world event teaches us more about the grassroots community and the mobilization process by which individuals respond to national disasters.

No single theory, or set of theories, can be identified as the core concepts upon which disaster preparedness plans and practices are based.

TAM Model (2003)

Gefen, Karahanna, and Straub (2003) Technology Acceptance Model

Fundamental to this model, the initial adoption and/or acceptance of IT technology as a driving force which influences the potential and continued use of online training and blended learning opportunities.

Examined reactions using two constructs (Davis, Bagozzi, & Warshaw, 1989):

Perceived usefulness (PU)

Perceived ease of use (PEOU)

TAM Model (2003)

Perceived self-expressiveness

Perceived ease of use (PEOU)

Perceived usefulness (PU)

Intention to use

Figure 1: Extended TAM Model

Attitudes towards use

Perceived self-expressiveness

Perceived ease of use (PEOU)

Perceived usefulness(PU)

Attitudes towards use

Intention to use

Distance Modalities

Training and mobilization at a distanceVBrick ‘live’ webcastsVodcasts and archival video-on-demandPodcastsAdobe Captivate online tutorialsGoToMeeting (G2M) and GoToWebinar

(G2W)VoiceThreads

OCPHP Program Offering #1

Planning P Process for a Type 3 Incident Adobe Captivate online refresher tutorial

Followed by a regional 8-hour face-to-face classroom training

Refresher tutorial hosted at: http://glennschool.osu.edu/planningP

Pre-test evaluation hosted on OhioTRAIN (https://oh.train.org)

In-class observations and participant self-assessments during F2F trainings

Post-test evaluation hosted on OhioTRAIN

Public Health Nursing Surge NATIONAL RELEASE: The Training Trail to Competence in Disaster Surge Train-the-Trainer (Stanley, Polivka, Gordon, Taulbee, Kieffer and McCorkle, 2008)

“Embracing the Distance: Blended Learning Challenges & Solutions in

Preparedness”Sharon A. R. Stanley, Ph.D., RN, RS, OCPHP Program Director

Cheryl L. Engle, M.A., Learning Environment Manager

Ohio Center for Public Health Preparedness

GoToMeetings (G2M) to introduce training to each state’s POC

Delivered initial VBrick ‘overview’ vodcasts to roll-out the curriculum

Recorded Vbrick vodcasts for (4) training modules posted to CPH video repository at http://vod.cph.ohio-state.edu for trainers

Hiking Workshop component 8-hour classroom training

Monthly conference calls to maintain communication and interaction with partners while doing the Trail Guide self-study (CD-ROM)

OCPHP Program Offering #2

Psychological First-Aid: Helping Others in Times of Stress

Psychological First Aid: Psychological First Aid: Helping Others in Times of StressHelping Others in Times of Stress

Psychological First Aid: Helping Others in Times of StressDSCLS206A

April 26, 2008

Welcome

Entire Presentation

Delivered as (4) ‘live’ webcasts to American Red Cross volunteers in April, 2008

Archival vodcasts housed in the CPH video repository for future volunteers

Final program evaluation administered electronically on OhioTRAIN

Future goal to roll-out volunteer training using VBrick during disasters

OCPHP Program Offering #3

Methodology

Quasi-Experimental DesignPosttest Only with Nonequivalent Groups (Cook

and Campbell, 1979)Analyzed descriptive statistics across three

programsFinal program evaluation housed on OhioTRAIN

at https://oh.train.org

Context

Table 1

Composite Population of OCPHP Programs

Planning P PHN Surge Psychological First Aid Distance Modality

Blended Learning Series = 146

(online tutorial)

TtT Overview = 9

(live webinar/vodcast) Trail Guide = 255

(independent study, interactive CD-ROM)

Vodcast/webcast = 41

(live or video-on-demand)

Face-to-Face (F2F) Bioterrorism Region = 92 (classroom)

Hiking Workshop = 266 (classroom)

Results

Technology-enhanced learning items1 Planning P

(Captivate + F2F)

PHN Surge

(VBrick)

Psychological First Aid (VBrick)

PERCEIVED EASE OF USE (PEOU)

The webcast/ tutorial was easily accessible from the comfort of my desktop.

3.375 4.200

I liked being able to complete the ‘Planning P’ tutorial prerequisite via webcast.

3.642

Distance delivery fulfilled my training needs. 3.339

The quality of my learning experience was enhanced by using technology.

3.339 4.700

The web-based tutorial fulfilled my refresher training needs prior to attending the classroom session.

3.607 4.400

My preferred learning style is:

a) Face-to-face (F2F)

b) At a distance

c) Hands-on activities

d) Group exercises

e) Mobile technologies

30.9%

39.4%

12.7%

16.9%

63.6%

36.4%

1Summative results were based on a 5-point Likert-type rating scale:

(5=Strongly agree)

(4=Agree)

(3=Neutral)

(2=Disagree)

(1=Strongly Disagree)

Results (cont.d)

Technology-enhanced learning items1 Planning P

(Captivate + F2F)

PHN Surge

(VBrick)

Psychological First Aid (VBrick)

PERCEIVED USEFULNESS (PU)

Rate the overall quality of the course. Good – Very Good

I consider myself to be an early adopter of learning at a distance.

3.392

The following factors influenced my decision to train others in PHN Surge:The webcast formatThe opportunity to teach other public health nursesThe course contentThe blended learning nature of the course

3.667

4.333

4.667

4.333

The vodcast broadband quality was appropriate for my learning.

4.667

The vodcast provided an opportunity for critical thinking and self-reflection.

4.333

I appreciate the self-directed nature of this training opportunity.

5.000

I would enroll in another OCPHP distance education course offering.

5.000

1Summative results were based on a 5-point Likert-type rating scale:

(5=Strongly agree)

(4=Agree)

(3=Neutral)

(2=Disagree)

(1=Strongly Disagree)

Discussion

Continued efforts are needed to right-size the future EMS workforce and the important role of research in accomplishing this end.

Dr. Jeff Runge (2008), U.S. Department of Homeland Security, postulates that “…in the future, the gap between supply and demand will drive the economy and federal programs; whereas, research has the power to draw the attention of Congress” (EMS Workforce for the 21st Century Project, Third Annual Stakeholders Meeting, Washington, D.C.)

Cheryl L. Engle, M.A.Learning Environment ManagerOffice of Workforce DevelopmentCollege of Public HealthThe Ohio State University1212 Kinnear RoadColumbus, Ohio 43212 U.S.A.Office: 614.688.4493cengle@cph.osu.edu

Contact Information

Go Bucks!

References

Association of Schools for Public Health. (February, 2008). Confronting the public health workforce crisis: ASPH statement on the public health workforce. Retrieved on the World Wide Web on September 7, 2008 from http://www.asph.org/UserFiles/PHWFShortage0208.pdf.

Association of Schools for Public Health. (February 27, 2008). More than 250,000 additional public health workers needed by 2020 to avert public health crisis [Press Release]. Washington, DC. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on September 5, 2008 at http://www.asph.org/UserFiles/FINALASPHWorkforceRelease.pdf.

Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. (2008). State public health employee worker shortage report: A civil service recruitment and retention crisis. Retrieved on the World Wide Web on September 8, 2008 from http://www.astho.org/pubs/Worker-Shortage-Booklet.pdf.

Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. (2007). State of public health: Workforce survey results. Retrieved on the World Wide Web on September 8, 2008 from http://www.astho.org/pubs/WorkforceReport.pdf.

Covington, J. and Simpson, D. M. (August, 2006). An overview of disaster preparedness literature: Building blocks for an applied bay area template. University of Louisville Center for Hazards Research and Policy Development. Retrieved from the National Resource Center on Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities on September 7, 2008 at http://www.diversitypreparedness.org/Topic/Subtopic/Record-Detail/18/pageIndex__8/resourceId__16143/.

Davis, F.D., Bagozzi, R.P., and Warshaw, P.R. (1989). User acceptance of computer technology: a comparison of two theoretical models. Management Science, 35, 982-1002.

References (cont’d.)

EMS Workforce for the 21st Century: A national assessment. (2008). Retrieved from the World Wide Web on September 8, 2008 from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/.

EMS Workforce for the 21st Century Project. (May 8-9, 2008). Third Annual Stakeholder Meeting held in Washington, D.C. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on September 7, 2008 from http://www.ems.gov/portal/site/ems/menuitem.5149822b03938f65a8de25f076ac8789/?vgnextoid=dc4a10d898318110VgnVCM1000002fd17898RCRD.

Gebbie, K. Rosenstock, L. and Hernandez, L. (2003). Who will keep the public healthy? Educating public health professionals for the 21st Century. Board on Health Promotion and Prevention, Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on September 7, 2008 from http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=030908542X.

Gefen, D. Karahanna, E. and Straub, D. (2003) Trust and TAM in online shopping: an integrated model. MIS Quarterly, 27(1), 51-90.

Moore, M.G. (2005). Distance Education: A Systems View, Second, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Stanley, S., Polivka, B., Gordon, D., Taulbee, K. Kieffer, G. and McCorkle, S. (2008). The ExploreSurge trail guide and hiking workshop: Discipline-Specific Education for Public Health Nurses. Public Health Nursing, 25(2), 166-175.

The author would like to acknowledge the support of Dr. Sharon A.R. Stanley and Ms. Nichole R. Lemin from the Ohio Center for Public Health Preparedness; Dr. Marjorie Kukor from the American Red Cross; and Ms. Robin Franz from the Franklin County Medical Reserve Corps for their willingness to implement blended learning strategies in their preparedness and disaster readiness curricula. A special thanks to Ms. Michelle Baker, Graduate Research Associate, from the Office of Workforce Development and Ohio Center for Public Health Preparedness for her dedication and intellectual curiosity in

granting my research inquiries.

Acknowledgements

E-Learn World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education, Las Vegas,

Nevada USA, November 17-21, 2008