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Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirit plus (LGBTQ2S+) people have distinct healthcare needs that may be unaddressed in many undergraduate healthcare curricula. The Radiation Therapy Program (RADTH) at the University of Alberta underwent a review of the three-year didactic curriculum using an online survey. The survey sought to ascertain if, where and how topics related to LGBTQ2S + healthcare are taught. Results indicated that out of 10 RADTH program faculty respondents, three teach related topics. The total time dedicated within the three-year curriculum was approximately three and a half hours. Other findings showed that faculty are interested in receiving more education in this area and would favour discussions about how to incorporate these themes into appropriate courses. This preliminary investigation demonstrated that there has been some initial work in this area, but there is more to be done.

Writing and submitting a paper can be a daunting prospect, especially the first time. One of the more challenging aspects is knowing how to begin. Countless projects in the workplace never make it past local dissemination or conference presentation. This informal guide will help you take that next step and begin the peer-reviewed publication journey.

Introduction/Background Healthcare programs have proven the benefits of standardized patients in educational activities, but limited scholarship exists on the involvement of cancer survivors in radiation therapy education. This innovative approach to simulation-based education in radiation therapy is the first to integrate cancer survivors as standardized patients in a high-fidelity environment. This research aims to examine the impact of cancer survivors on the students’ learning during their simulation course. Methods This qualitative research used a phenomenological approach to gather data and analyze the students’ view of their interactions with cancer survivors in the simulation course. The researchers conducted three focus group discussions with five of the eight radiation therapy students using a set of preformulated questions. Results The collected data were comparatively analyzed, and the research team identified four main themes: experience, teaching/coaching, patient-centeredness and gratitude. These represented the students’ perspective on their experiences and the unique learning opportunities provided by the cancer survivors. Findings/Discussion The simulation activities with the cancer survivors provided a safe and realistic experience for the students. This research highlighted the influence of the cancer survivors’ oncology journey on the skills development of the radiation therapy students. Conclusion The students benefited from the authentic patient perspective of the cancer survivors which helped build their confidence and develop their skills prior to clinical placement. This research demonstrated that incorporating cancer survivors as standardized patients in radiation therapy simulation education has added significant value to the students’ learning.

Introduction Social media has emerged as a powerful platform for engagement and learning. There is a growing trend toward the use of social media among health care professionals and professional groups to disseminate and discuss knowledge. Twitter is one tool that may enhance continuing professional development (CPD) for the medical radiation technologist. To evaluate the potential benefits of Twitter to CPD among medical radiation technologists, this study explored the integration of Bloom's taxonomy with Twitter-based professional activities. Approach In 2015, the Medical Radiation Journal Club ( https://medradjclub.wordpress.com/ ) commenced a monthly Twitter-based journal club for medical radiation professionals. This study investigates the application of Bloom's taxonomy of the Twitter-based journal club for CPD purposes. Outcome The Twitter-based journal club provides a valuable platform for CPD. The combination of journal articles, supplementary reading, online blog, and the one-hour Twitter discussion engages all levels of Bloom's taxonomy; remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create. A deeper insight revealed that the Twitter journal club provides an authentic learning environment suitable for CPD in which participants consume, collaborate, and produce. Conclusions This evaluation demonstrated that the Twitter journal club can provide an authentic learning environment with all the cognitive dimensions afforded in a formal classroom or face-to-face journal club. Indeed, in some ways, these cognitive dimensions are enhanced in the Twittersphere.

Introduction The medical radiation sciences' (MRS) MedRadJournalClub attracts a global group of participants to monthly sessions to discuss selected journal articles. The September 2017 session explored the experiences of MRS professionals working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) patients. The aim of the chat was to establish staff educational preparation, how participants’ organizations approached the issue, and what participants would do differently at work or at home in relation to this patient population after the chat. Method Data were extracted using the Twitter advanced search function with #MedRadJClub from the 19th to 23rd September 2017. The data were reviewed and categorized for themes. Tweets related to shared LGBT resources were captured, verified, and counted separately. Results 44 participants took part in the September Twitter chat. After data cleaning, 127 tweets were included for analysis with a further 16 tweets sharing LGBT resources. Almost all of the participants disclosed that they had no undergraduate education or workplace training in the care of LGBT patients. Workplaces of a limited few participants had specific approaches to improve experiences for this patient population. Many participants were eager to advocate for changes in their workplaces after the Twitter chat. Conclusion There is still work to be carried out to educate MRS professionals to enhance their LGBT patients’ experience and improve workplaces. Positive changes in education and a more inclusive clinical environment will ultimately improve care for LGBT patients.

The publisher regrets that the table 2 was inadvertently published as an online appendix files instead of regular table in the proof. The table 2 should be as follows. [Table presented]The publisher would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Background The "resource therapist" supervisory radiation therapy roles at the British Columbia Cancer Agency were recently evaluated. Methods The process included interviews with resource therapists (n = 22) and an electronic survey of stakeholders including department managers (n = 5) and clinical radiation therapists (RTs) (n = 230). Results Themes from both sets of data included the ability and advisability of maintaining clinical expertise, role clarity and job creep, and the definition of leadership. The resource therapists were balancing an increasingly complex administrative workload that varied between provincial centres. The understanding of the role differed between stakeholders. Only 48% of the RTs agreed that they had a good idea of what resource therapists do and many desired the resource therapists to be more "hands on." Conclusions In agreement with the literature, many resource therapists view themselves as clinicians first and managers second. There is also a marked difference in how the role is viewed between resource therapists and RTs. Role incumbents may benefit from access to more formal preparation, including job shadowing, training, and mentoring. There is also a need to increase understanding of the role across all stakeholder groups.

Reflection is a way of evaluating best practice and challenging existing norms, while at the same time, considering one’s personal values and assumptions in our personal and professional lives. However, many health practitioners may lack the skills to do this effectively. Through participation in a series of three workshops, practitioners in the Radiation Medicine Program at Princess Margaret Hospital have learned and acquired new skills to encourage reflection and reflective practice in themselves, their colleagues as well as with their students. A pre- and post-course survey was used to ascertain their level of knowledge of reflection and reflective practice. An additional survey at 3 months assessed the frequency of use and ongoing comfort level with reflective practice. Results of the evaluation indicate that the participants’ knowledge of reflective practice has improved their understanding of reflection in clincal practice. They recognize the importance of reflection and anticipate increasing their use of reflection in/on practice. As well, participants have been able to sustain the positive momentum 3 months after the course was delivered.

Introduction This qualitative study explores the experiences of undergraduate radiation therapy students who have English as a second language (ESL) in the clinical environment, as well as the experiences of staff members who teach these students. Specific study aims were to increase understanding of the issues faced by this subset of students, including identifying potential barriers to clinical learning. Methods and design A qualitative methodology was utilized with focus groups as the data collection tool to gain insights from students/recent graduates whose primary language was not English, as well as from staff members who educate this group of students in the clinical environment. Two focus groups were conducted; Group 1 ( n =6) consisted of ESL graduates/students and Group 2 ( n =5) consisted of radiation therapy staff members and clinical coordinators who are actively involved in the education of ESL students. Comparative data analysis of the transcribed discussions was carried out using content analysis and categorized according to the emergent themes. Results Three overarching themes were identified for both groups, "Communication", "Differences" and "Dealing with it…" The primary barrier for ESL students was seen as proficiency in English, which manifested in a number of ways. This resulted in a lack of confidence and a subsequent sense of alienation. External challenges identified were unfamiliarity with Canadian systems and cultural differences. Support strategies identified included the use of mentorship, professional development and external support for teaching staff and journaling, among others. Conclusions There are identified challenges for ESL students in the clinical environment, thus it is important to provide support for this population to improve learning outcomes. Recommendations for practice, arising from the study as well as the available literature included: allowing extra time, assisting with improving English proficiency, improving confidence, different learning approaches and ensuring the message is clear.

Part two of this two-part series presents the results of a departmental initiative implemented in 2003 at a large urban cancer centre, Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This new model for radiation therapists was called Advanced Integrated Practice (AIP) and was developed, in part, to encourage and promote scholarship within radiation therapy. The AIP model incorporated integrated clinical specialty roles designed to blend exemplary clinical practice with focused academic activities. This paper discusses an evaluation of the AIP model undertaken to obtain a formal measure of how the model had evolved, how the radiation therapists and other stakeholders were responding to the new model, whether the initial outcomes were realized and to create plans for further development of the design. The evaluation utilized a mixture of traditional qualitative research methodologies such as focus groups, quantitative surveys and a variety of other available measurable outcomes. Outcomes from the model included increased opportunities for diverse roles that incorporated an element of academic practice and augmented career choice and scope for radiation therapists. In addition, academic output and research work also increased within the department. Lessons learned from the implementation and evaluation of the model are shared, and the authors offer some suggestions to increase scholarly activity within the profession.

As radiation therapy practice evolves with advancing treatment and planning technologies, merging of imaging modalities, changing working models and the advancement to higher education, radiation therapists are frequently finding themselves on the frontline of translating new knowledge into practice. To a large degree, this growing involvement in self-directed original research, with associated dissemination of completed results, has led to an increasing number of therapists being encouraged to pursue an academic path in addition to a clinical career. In Canada, radiation therapists are being appointed as faculty to university departments for the first time. It is heartening that such opportunities are increasing; therapists are able to play a profound role in developing an evidence-based professional body of knowledge while at the same time being recognised for scholarly endeavours. However, despite these many positive steps, barriers and challenges to the development of a scholarly culture for radiation therapists still exist. Part one of this two-part series explores the history of the profession and the subsequent development of a scholarly culture.

Objectives The purpose of this study was to discover and compare radiation therapy patients' and radiation therapists' perceptions of patients' educational topics of interest and methods of information delivery during a course of radiation therapy. Methods Using Likert-type 4-point rating scales, 42 therapists and 183 radiation therapy patients were surveyed to rate the degree of importance of 15 informational items (for example, "What it feels like to have treatment"). In addition, therapists and patients ranked 11 methods of informational delivery (for example, "Watching video tapes") in order of preference. Results Results indicated several differences in therapists' and patients' perceptions of both the educational topics of interest and methods of information delivery. Among other things, patients assigned high importance to after treatment issues ("What happens after radiation therapy is finished") and how radiation therapy works, these areas were not seen as important by the studied therapists. Patients expressed a strong preference for receiving information about radiation therapy from their family doctor (ranked third), therapists ranked this source of information as the least important. Conclusion It is vital to tailor educational interventions according to the patient's preference to optimize both understanding and compliance. This study demonstrated noteworthy differences in several areas between therapists' and patients' perceptions. Recommendations therefore include raising therapist's awareness of topics that are important to patients and meaningful informational delivery methods.

This research project analyses how Ontario therapists currently define advanced practice and identifies some of the issues involved. Twenty-two qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted at four Ontario cancer centres with a group of therapists, managers and educators. The resulting data were analyzed for emergent themes, which were subsequently presented as three overarching themes. The themes that emerged were “What is Advanced Practice?”, “Scope of Practice Issues” and “Professional Image”. Therapists offered many current and potential examples of advanced practice and were cognizant of how evolving roles may impact both their profession and their collaborative relationships with other disciplines. Recommendations arising from this study include the need for a consistent advanced practice framework with underpinning professional development and the need to nurture and support growing professional confidence. Reimbursement issues should also be addressed and there is a pressing requirement for subsequent evaluation of the impact of new roles in all domains (especially patient outcomes).

Objectives: There is a growing trend towards the use of online journal clubs amongst healthcare professionals as a means of sharing knowledge, discussing evidence in an accessible form of continued professional development (CPD). In March 2015, the Medical Radiation Journal Club was founded to run monthly Twitter-based journal critique and discussion. The Twitter journal club is aimed at all medical radiation professionals. The hour-long meetings are based on a key selected theme relevant to all medical radiation technologists, with one key study chosen from the literature and supplemented by suggested reading. The objective of this study was to examine the progression and development of this initiative over the initial 12 months. Methods: #Tweets including the journal club hashtag (#medradjclub) were analysed for each session through third party services, Symplur (www.symplur.com) and Keyhole (www.keyhole.com). Available information included total tweet count, total participants, total impressions and country of tweet origin. Results: Provisional analysis indicates that there is a core group of consistent participants, with others joining for topics relevant to their area of practice. The initial trend is for relatively consistent volumes of tweets and impressions across the chats. The Twitter journal club has a global reach, typically 500+ tweets per hour and a total reach in the order of 1000000 per session. Conclusions: Online journal clubs provide a forum for promotion of evidence based practice, academic debate and professional networking, free from traditional physical boundaries. Analysis of the first twelve months of #MedRadJclub demonstrates consistent participation and global reach, and is an accessible, interactive platform for discussion of research and practice in this field. The Twitter journal club is consistent with globalisation and internationalisation strategies amongst the medical radiation technology professions.

The principal goal of interprofessional education (IPE) is to cultivate collaborative practice for providing patient centered care. Introduction to Radiation Therapy (IRT) is a course designed to introduce radiation oncology residents to the radiation treatment process and the interprofessional nature of the radiation oncology environment. Each resident is paired with a radiation therapy student during the clinical portion of the IRT course. The intent behind the pairing is to facilitate opportunities for IPE and to establish a professional relationship for interprofessional collaboration in the future. The overall outcome of the IPE experience has been positive and beneficial to both groups. Results of the survey examining the residents' and the radiation therapy students' perception of their IPE experience within the IRT course showed that they were able to gain insight into each other's role, as well as learn with and from each other. However, the timing of the IPE experience had some impact on the participants' ability to reflect on their own practice and share it meaningfully.

Interviews are a cornerstone of modern health care research and can be used by both experienced and novice researchers to gather data for projects. For qualitative research, the semistructured or unstructured interview is often used and this can be carried out in various ways. Methods discussed in this directed reading include the face-to-face interview, group interviews such as focus groups, and remote interview conducted by telephone or using the computer. These methods are discussed in detail including advantages and disadvantages of each as well as accompanying practical considerations. Regardless of the method used, there are several matters to be considered in the process of planning, conducting, and analyzing interviews. These consist of initially selecting appropriate participants for the study, preparing a research protocol, and writing useful interview questions designed to capture the information required. It is also important for the researcher to be able to develop and demonstrate rapport with the participant and use attentive listening. Ethical issues relating to the conduct of interviews are also considered, including consent, privacy, and confidentiality. Finally, there is a discussion on the method of analyzing qualitative interview data to prepare for its dissemination in the form of an article or presentation.

Preceptorship is a time-limited, education-focused model for teaching and learning within a clinical environment that uses clinical staff as role models. Its primary goal is to assist new staff and students to adapt to their roles, develop clinical skills and socialize the novice to a department or institution. It has been widely used within the allied health professions; however, very little is known of its practice within the medical radiation sciences. The purpose of this paper was to review the literature available regarding the practice of preceptorship within the medical radiation sciences as well as provide a general overview of the key components to consider in any application of preceptorship. Key findings have been categorized into the following components: evolving definitions of preceptorship, purpose of preceptorship, benefits, roles within preceptorship, qualities of a good preceptor, drawbacks, structured and self-directed preceptorship programs.