Interprofessional Interviewing in Intraprofessional Athletic Training Student Pairs: A Multi-Institutional Educational Technique

Abstract

Context The Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education 2020 Standards for Professional Programs highlight the need to further incorporate interprofessional education components into the curricula for athletic training programs. Interprofessional education can be a challenging component to integrate into the curriculum on an ongoing and routine basis, especially when access, quantity, and quality of interprofessional education resources are limited at individual universities. Objective To promote professional socialization between athletic training students of different universities while also promoting teamwork and collaboration values and skills through the use of shared interprofessional resources. Background This educational technique was developed as a means to address the lack of access to interprofessional resources faced by 3 professional athletic training programs in order to help meet compliance with 2020 Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education standards 8, 57, and 79. Description Athletic training students from 3 professional athletic training programs were paired with one athletic training student from another institution to research a nonorthopaedic, general medical condition. They were assigned a 3-part project: (1) review the existing literature for peer-reviewed articles on their assigned pathology, (2) interview a non–athletic trainer health care provider who has worked with the pathology, and (3) create an education infographic of the information to use as an educational tool for patients. The project helped to promote collaborative and team-based skills critical to interprofessional and intraprofessional success as a health care provider. Clinical Advantage(s) Students learned with, from, and about how non–athletic trainer health care professionals manage their assigned nonorthopaedic, general medical pathologies in clinical practice. Conclusion(s) This collaborative project allowed athletic training students to develop intraprofessional and interprofessional skills by working with both athletic training students and non–athletic training health care professionals. Informative feedback on how the students perceived their interactions was received at the conclusion of the assignments.