Thesis Defence: Co-Developing Evidence-Informed Considerations for an E-Learning Course

Parres Holliday, supervised by Dr. Heather Gainforth, will defend their thesis titled “Co-Developing Evidence-Informed Considerations for an E-Learning Course: Spinal Cord Injury Peer Health Coaches’ Delivery of Smoking Cessation Support” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Health and Exercise Sciences.

An abstract for Parres Holliday’s thesis is included below.

Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in-person defences.

Abstract

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is life-altering and affects over 86,000 people in Canada. Damage to the spinal cord due to injury or disease can result in partial or complete paralysis and lasting effects such as loss of bladder control, neuropathic pain, and cardiovascular issues. People living with SCI report higher rates of cigarette smoking and a disproportionate burden of tobacco-related health disparities compared to individuals without SCI. Yet, there is a paucity of research related to tailored cigarette smoking cessation services for people living with SCI.

Recommendations for SCI BC’s Peer Health Coaches to provide cigarette smoking cessation behavioural support were co-developed. Using an Integrated Knowledge Translation approach, in partnership with SCI BC, this research aimed to co-develop evidence-informed considerations to guide the instructional design of an e-learning course to support Peer Health Coaches in delivering cigarette-smoking cessation recommendations for people living with SCI. Semi-structured interviews were conducted virtually with participants who have expertise in SCI, peer support, smoking cessation, and e-learning course design.

The first objective was to understand what e-learning content and design features address Peer Health Coaches’ barriers and facilitators to delivering the recommendations and engaging with the e-learning course. Application of the Theoretical Domains Framework revealed barriers related to referral processes for smoking-cessation medications, scope of practice, and ensuring that course content was representative of Peer Health Coaches’ professional role and personal identity. The second objective was to identify key elements of e-learning course design that may support Peer Health Coaches’ engagement with the e-learning course by applying the Inclusion, Design, Engagement, Evaluation, Assessment, and Support Framework. This revealed a preference for design features that meet accessibility standards, a variety of interactive activities, such as videos and role-playing scenarios, and opportunities to connect with others.

Findings provide a long list of intervention strategies that may be used to support Peer Health Coaches’ delivery of the cigarette smoking cessation recommendations and engagement with the e-learning course. These findings inform the next steps for SCI BC to refine this list of intervention options and begin to co-design the e-learning course to train Peer Health Coaches.