Faculty fellowship in interprofessional education: An atypical approach to faculty development

Abstract

As interprofessional education moves to the forefront of the health professions education, faculty development is needed to effectively teach students about interprofessional collaboration and practice. A prospective, 12-month Fellowship for Interprofessional Development at Samford (FINDS) program was developed to promote faculty development and gauge faculty perceptions while building student opportunities in the area of interprofessional education. Participants accepted into the fellowship were assigned a team with 2 or more professions. The participants completed an on-line course and attended three in-person seminars or workshops. Each team developed and implemented either a curricular or co-curricular interprofessional student activity with in the College of Health Sciences. Participants completed a pre- and post-assessment based on the Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale (IEPS) along with a final program evaluation. Nineteen faculty members were accepted into the first cohort and nine in the second cohort. The fellowship program improved faculty's perceptions related to their knowledge of IPE especially about understanding contributions by other professionals and working closely with others. In addition, nine new student interprofessional education opportunities were incorporated into curriculum or co-curriculum. A faculty development fellowship is a good resource to enhance growth during early stages of interprofessional college integration.