Examining the Outcomes of Project ECHO ® as an Interprofessional Community of Practice for Pediatric Feeding Clinicians

This study examined the outcomes of establishing a pediatric feeding ECHO network. Using a prospective, mixed-methods design, two cohorts of allied health professionals were recruited. Each cohort participated in eight, 90-min videoconference sessions incorporating a didactic presentation and clinical case presentation. The case was presented by a participant, with questions and recommendations provided by the ECHO network. Participants completed: (1) a learning needs analysis before the ECHO series, (2) a self-reported confidence questionnaire pre, post, and 3-month post, (3) a satisfaction questionnaire after each session, and (4) an overall satisfaction questionnaire post-ECHO series. Time spent by hospital allied health clinicians providing impromptu phone/email feeding support to external clinicians was recorded for 8 weeks prior to and 8 weeks during the ECHO series. Forty-seven participants were included in the study, attending an average of 5.8 sessions. Significant improvements in self-reported confidence were observed across the three time points (p <  0.01) with less experienced participants demonstrating greater improvements. Participants reported high satisfaction with ECHO, with 93% (40/43) wanting continued access to ECHO in future. The multidisciplinary format, interactivity, structure, and case-based nature of ECHO were considered benefi cial. A 75% reduction in requests for support from clinicians in the same catchment area was noted during the ECHO s...
Source: Dysphagia - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Source Type: research