Comparing the Perceptions of Interprofessional Socialization Among Health Profession Students

Abstract

Introduction: Based on a review of literature, there is a gap of knowledge on how students perceive the professional roles and responsibilities of other disciplines. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of interprofessional socialization among health profession students. Subjects: Participants included 300 undergraduate and 114 graduate students from eight health disciplines: nursing, communication disorders, physical therapy, social work, radiological science, occupational therapy, clinical lab science, and nutritional science. Methods: Data were collected using the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale (ISVS-21). The participants rated 21 items about their beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes of interprofessional socialization on a Likert scale from 1-7, with 1 being not at all and 7 being to a very great extent. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance was conducted to compare the health disciplines for differences. Results: Descriptive analysis revealed that 95.2% of students perceived an awareness of interprofessional socialization as occurring from a fairly great extent to a great extent, with means of 5.12 or higher on the 1-7 scale. There were no significant differences between the health disciplines. Conclusion: Findings suggest that students have the readiness to understand each other’s professional roles and responsibilities. Although there are no standardized educational strategies to facilitate student collaboration between disciplines, considerations for future interprofessional collaborative activities are indicated.