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Background Patient and family engagement (PFE) is vital to the spirit of the medical home. This article reflects the efforts of an expert consensus panel, the Patient and Family Engagement Workgroup as part of the Society of General Internal Medicine’s 2013 Research Conference. Objective To review extant literature on PFE in pediatric and adult medicine and quality improvement, highlight emerging best practices and models, suggest questions for future research, and provide references to tools and resources to facilitate implementation of PFE strategies. Methods We conducted a narrative review of relevant articles published from 2000–2015. Additional information was retrieved from personal contact with experts and recommended sources from workgroup members. Results Despite the theoretical importance of PFE and policy recommendations that PFE occur at all levels across the health care system, evidence of effectiveness is limited, particularly for quality improvement. There is some evidence that PFE is effective, mostly related to engagement in the care of individual patients, but the evidence is mixed and few studies have assessed the effect of PFE on health outcomes. Measurement issues and the lack of a single comprehensive conceptual model pose challenges to progress in this field. Recommendations for future research and a list of practical tools and resources to facilitate PFE are provided. Conclusion Although PFE appeals to patients, families, providers, and policy-makers, research is needed to assess outcomes beyond satisfaction, address implementation barriers, and support engagement in practice redesign and quality improvement. Partnering with patients and families has great potential to support high quality health care and optimize outcomes.

Research was conducted during the delivery of a series of workshops on language assessment with Haitian teachers in the spring of 2013. The final products of these workshops were several revised national English examinations presented to the Haitian Ministry of Education and Professional Training (MENFP). The research goal was to examine the language assessment literacy (LAL) development of both teachers and language assessment specialists during this collaboration. Data included the compiled feedback from Haitian teachers on draft examinations during the workshops, as well as survey and interview responses immediately following the workshops. Results reveal the complementary expertise of teachers and specialists, which facilitated LAL development by both parties. Results also identified challenges in collaborative decision making and consensus building to be addressed in future projects.

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There are increasing numbers of non-native English speaking applicants to Canadian universities (AUCC 2008a, 2010), which are committed to promoting linguistic and cultural diversity (AUCC 2008b). One result of this trend is that university admissions officers, as gatekeepers, are faced with a growing and potentially confusing array of language test scores when making their decisions. These admissions decision makers need a certain amount of language assessment literacy (LAL) to enable them to make use of these language test scores effectively and ethically (O’Loughlin 2011, 2013). This article reports on the first phase of a project designed to address this challenge. The project involves the collaboration of assessment professionals and admissions officers across Canada in determining the LAL base needed for users of language test scores in university admissions decision-making.This first phase of research consisted of a survey with university admissions officers across Canada, inquiring about their knowledge, beliefs, and levels of confidence in making use of language test scores in decision-making. Results have begun to reveal the nature of the LAL needed for these users, and have suggested the most appropriate content for later informational workshops with admissions officers (Phase 2 of the project). While some evidence of misunderstanding was identified, respondents demonstrate awareness of concepts related to validity in language assessment, albeit without making use of the conventional language of the field.