Methods:
The first event was hosted in a facility for individuals with special needs. Vital sign screenings were completed in a gymnasium and drapes were placed in a secondary room to provide a semi-private space for athletes to have physicals completed. The second event was hosted by the university on campus in a newly developed nurse practitioner clinical suite, which provided privacy for athletes. The private rooms allowed providers to conduct a detailed exam and gather findings that might’ve been missed in a less private setting. The university was able to have an additional use of space intended for students, to provide a need for the community.
By utilizing the principles of Knowles theory of andragogy (Knowles, 1990), students were able to participate in a transformative, active, interdisciplinary service-based learning experience. Knowles theory of andragogy is based on the premise that the adult learner must be actively involved in the learning process, know that their experiences are the foundation for future knowledge to be gained, knowledge gained is relevant and impactful, and through learning something new, the learner is solving a problem (Knowles, 1990).
Results: Student participants were provided an environment not only to practice the skills they learn in the classroom setting about their future roles and understand how the different healthcare professions work together to meet the needs of the patient (Isibel et al., 2018, Jones et al., 2018; Morin Fraile et al., 2017; Weiss et al., 2016). Student participants were also able to network with individuals in their future career settings to have a personalized understanding of healthcare careers. Students had the opportunity to work with a vulnerable population and see conditions that they might only ever read in textbooks. Students were able to assess the athlete’s physical limitations and understand how these limitations affect the athlete's ability to participate in sporting events. By understanding how these limitations changed the athlete the students were able to have a compassionate understanding of the barriers these athletes face (Brown & Bright, 2017). Students gained confidence in their ability to perform their skills as well as pride in making a difference in the community they reside.
Future recommendations for Special Olympics Medfest events include continuing use in the university simulation clinic setting. The simulated clinic setting provided private rooms for athletes and a convent location for volunteers and staff. University student volunteers and staff were able to come and go as their schedules allowed due to being located on campus. In future events besides having healthcare students involved, the goal to include students from the college of education and college of business would be ideal. Students from the college of business could help with the organization of documentation and flow of participates, and the college of education students would have the opportunity to provide education to students about healthy lifestyle habits. Having enough family nurse practitioners present to provide clinical hours for family nurse practitioner students would be ideal. Due to one-to-one clinical rules, clinical hours were not able to be provided to participants at these events in 2018. In future years, conducting events over two days will be ideal. Two days allows for smaller numbers to occur, providing participants with the opportunities to interact with the athletes personally, and for providers to not feel rushed during assessments. The number of athlete participants will be limited using name pre-registration before the event occurs. In 2017 we had 400 athletes register, and only 238 attended, in 2018 we had 300 athletes register and 308 were screened with 70 sent away. We found that schools were arriving that either did not pre-register or brought additional athletes than initially thought. To ensure accurate assessment findings and quality of volunteers and athletes experience, limitations will need to be addressed for 2019 events. Athletes did not like longer than expected wait times due to increased numbers and volunteers did not have a moment to take a break as needed during the day.
Conclusion:
Special Olympics athletes were able to receive medical screenings to provide the ability to participate in the sports events and screen for other conditions. All the Special Olympics athletes screened were from low-income areas, where they might not have had the screenings completed otherwise. Special Olympics athletes provided these screenings that allowed them to participate in the sporting events for the 2018-2019 season which are shown to increase the athlete’s self-esteem and self-confidence. Medfest screenings provided opportunities for health promotion to occur. Service-based learning projects have been shown to strengthen interdisciplinary relationships and make a positive impact to the community served (Isibel et al., 2018; Jones et al., 2018; Weiss et al., 2018). By providing physicals to the Special Olympics athletes at the MedFest event, students were able to learn about the profession they are going into, refine their skills under professional supervision, learn interdisciplinary relationships all while making a difference in the lives of the Special Olympic athletes.
By providing physicals to Special Olympics athletes, participants were able to ensure screenings were offered to a community that might not have had screenings otherwise due to financial limitations. Special Olympics has been noted to improve self-esteem and self-confidence in the participants. Participants from the previous year shared stories of their accomplishments along with the feelings of pride they had. Student volunteers were able to see the importance of screening at-risk populations as well as providing services for those in need. Through the utilization of Knowles theory of andragogy, undergraduate and graduate healthcare students were able to address the needs of the community while learning more about their future roles as members of the healthcare team.