Interprofessional pedagogy in community settings: An autoethnographic study

Abstract

The Council for Social Work Education has made a commitment to participate in interprofessional education and interprofessional curriculum building. Across medical professions, there is a common concern about the consequences of poor teamwork and implicit bias. Both medical error and interpersonal misunderstanding are an important contribution to health care disparities. Introducing interprofessional education opportunities early in professional education, offering common assignments to all professions, having a committed interprofessional faculty, and involving interprofessional students in curriculum design are all considered important to quality interprofessional education. At the core of this study is a student authoethnographic investigation of three different interprofessional interventions as part of her MSW internship. This research collaboration involved regular mentoring discussions with her field instructor to flesh out cultural context and theoretical relevance of her observations. The writing and discussion experiences of this partnership brought up concerns about unaddressed complexity in interprofessional team interactions. Professional-centrism was observed regularly, and this lack of respect for difference among team members often foreshadows the respect patients received from the medical team. Social separation, empathy, and avoiding team conflict were also a focus.