Ellen Daley, PhD, MPH

Transcription

1 Ellen Daley, PhD, MPH

2 Women s Health Traditionally: Dichotomized between reproductive and nonreproductive issues Approached from a limited perspective by discipline (e.g. biomedical, psychological, social science, etc.) Resulting in siloed clinical care and research Influence by women s social, cultural, political, and economic environments across the lifespan.

3 The Oral/Systemic Connection Women s oral/systemic health conditions can be categorized as follows: Health conditions that are specific to women where systemic conditions impact oral health (e.g. pregnancy, menopause, etc.) Systemic health conditions that are caused or exacerbated by poor oral health conditions (e.g. periodontal disease and heart disease) Oral manifestations resultant of a range of behavioral issues more common among women (e.g. eating disorders and resulting oral conditions)

4 Oral/Systemic Connection Examples of Oral/Systemic Women s Health Conditions System Oral Oral System Behavioral Oral Systemic health conditions that result in oral issues Pregnancy Infant feeding practices Eating disorders Diabetes Heart disease Menopause Osteoporosis Systemic health issues that result from oral conditions (e.g. gingivitis) Preeclampsia Gestational diabetes Preterm birth Low infant birth weight Congenital oral defects Respiratory problems Diabetes Stroke Heart Disease Behavioral issues and conditions that have oral manifestations Eating disorders Intimate partner violence Substance use/abuse Poor nutrition Smoking Stress

5 Women s Oral/Systemic Health We ve come to believe that the link between women s systemic and oral health across the lifespan necessitates a transdisciplinary approach to research, practice, and policy.

6 What does multidisciplinary mean? Multidisciplinarity is a process in which scholars from disparate fields work independently or sequentially, periodically coming together to share their individual perspectives for purposes of achieving broader-gauged analyses of common research problems. Participants in multidisciplinary teams remain firmly anchored in the concepts and methods of their respective fields. Public Health Medicine Dentistry (Stokols, Hall, Taylor, and Moser, 2008)

7 What does interdisciplinary mean? Interdisciplinarity is a more robust approach to scientific integration in the sense that team members not only combine or juxtapose concepts and methods drawn from their different fields, but also work more intensively to integrate their divergent perspectives, even while remaining anchored in their own respective fields. Social Work Sociology Women s Health Public Health Psychology Anthropology Interdisciplinary Research Nursing Communication Dentistry Medicine Library Science (Stokols, Hall, Taylor, and Moser, 2008)

8 What does transdisciplinary mean? Transdisciplinarity is a process in which team members representing different fields work together over extended periods to develop shared conceptual and methodologic frameworks that not only integrate but also transcend their respective disciplinary perspectives. Communication Medicine Public Health Anthropology Dentistry Library Science Psychology Nursing Sociology Social Work Women s Studies (Stokols, Hall, Taylor, and Moser, 2008)

9 What does transdisciplinary mean? Disciplinary Multidisciplinary Interdisciplinary Transdisciplinary

10 Moving from multidisciplinary to transdisciplinary research

11 Transdisciplinary Research Exercise Congratulations! You have just received a $25,000 grant that has to have an interdisciplinary basis. Your group s task: come up with specific aims for your research.

12 Follow-Up Discussion What are some characteristics of the team you have assembled that will help make the team effective? Are there any characteristics that could hinder your team s ability to achieve its goals? How might role conflict occur and what are some strategies for resolving these potential issues? Reflecting on some of your recent team experiences, what kind of leadership have you brought to those teams?

13 The Big IG A group of women s health researchers and providers from a variety of disciplines (including anthropology, communications, dentistry, dental hygiene, medicine, nursing, public health, sociology and women s studies) was formed

14 Purpose of the study Establish a comprehensive and collaborative approach to women s health based on oral/systemic relations. Increase collaboration among different health disciplines using Systems Thinking and Lifecourse approaches to further the research, practice, and advocacy of women s health. Three oral/systemic links will be looked at: systemic health conditions affecting oral health, oral health conditions affecting systemic health, and behavioral issues affecting oral health. Professionals from a range of disciplines will be brought in to work on and offer insight towards the oral/systemic relationship in women s health.

15 What started as a very linear model, has now become more complex in order to more accurately reflect the complexity of our approach. We d like to know what you think about it and how you would suggest further changing it.

16 Transforming Women s Health: Exploring the Oral/Systemic Connection as a New Paradigm to Improve Women s Health Behavioral Macro Meso Birth to Menarche Menarche to Menopause Menopause and Beyond Micro Relationships at Micro scale Oral Systemic

17 HERE S AN EXAMPLE OF HOW THIS MODEL WOULD BE USED Behavioral Macro Meso Birth to Menarche I = Intervention Micro Caregiver ECC Relationships at Micro scale I Otitis Media Pediatrician Tooth Loss Hearing Loss Ped. Dentist I TOO LATE Ped. ENT Oral Systemic

18 MCH Leadership Defined An MCH Leader inspires and brings people together to achieve sustainable results to improve the lives of the MCH population. Source: MCH Leadership Defined, MCH Leadership Competencies Website,

19 The Value of Working in Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Teams Network, Network, Network Leadership Team Building Creativity and Innovation Passion for learning Flexibility and patience

20 Open Discussion Now that we have discussed the difference aspects of interdisciplinary/transdisciplinary research, think about your research or practice interests In what ways do you think you can incorporate aspects of interdisciplinary approaches into your own research? What do you see as benefits to incorporating an interdisciplinary approach? What difficulties may you come up against?

21 Thank you!