Abstract
BackgroundInterprofessional education in childhood cancer is a multifaceted field involving multiple healthcare professionals with general and specialised knowledge and skills. Complex treatment, care and rehabilitation require continuous professional development and maintenance of healthcare professionals’ competencies in their field of expertise. However, limited knowledge exists in comparing interprofessional and monoprofessional education. Only a few randomised studies have evaluated the effectiveness and efficiency of interprofessional education.The objective of this single-centre, investigator-initiated cluster randomised trial is to study the effect of interprofessional versus monoprofessional case-based learning on healthcare professionals’ knowledge of gastrointestinal side effects and attitudes towards team collaboration.MethodsThis study will randomise healthcare professionals to participate in either the experimental interprofessional group or the control monoprofessional group of case-based learning. The topic of the case-based intervention will be gastrointestinal side effects, one of six categories identified in a three-round Scandinavian Delphi study as relevant for interprofessional education in childhood cancer.The primary outcome is the self-reported questionnaire Assessment of Interprofessional Team Collaboration Scale. Secondary outcomes are measured by the self-reported questionnaires Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale Questionnaire, Safety Attitudes Questionnaire, and knowledge will be evaluated using a multiple-choice quiz.Participants will receive the self-reported questionnaires about 2 weeks before and 1 month after the intervention. On the day of the intervention, participants will answer a multiple-choice quiz before and after the case-based learning.Linear mixed models will be used to compare differences between the two groups in mean scores postintervention, adjusting for preintervention scores.DiscussionThis study will provide insight into the differences between interprofessional and monoprofessional case-based learning and how it affects healthcare professionals’ knowledge of gastrointestinal side effects and attitudes towards team collaboration.Trial registrationThe intervention was registered at Clinical Trials.gov: NCT04204109 on December 102,019 and with the National Committee on Health Research Ethics: H-19087506 December 112,019 and the Danish Data Protection Agency: P-2019-637 October 152,019.
Highlights
Interprofessional education in childhood cancer is a multifaceted field involving multiple healthcare professionals with general and specialised knowledge and skills
There has been a shift in the treatment paradigm in childhood cancer from cure towards normality and interprofessional collaboration in childhood cancer research has contributed to this [2, 3]
To continuously ensure and strengthen high-quality treatment and care, interprofessional education must be strategically planned based on a curriculum involving all relevant healthcare professionals and specific learning outcomes [7]
Summary
Trial design In this randomised controlled trial, the experimental group are interprofessional groups receiving CBL on children and adolescents with cancer and gastrointestinal side effects. The research team designing the case represents the two largest professional groups in childhood cancer: doctors and nurses. It will consist of one best answer format with three options will be developed for this trial based on guidelines for designing and developing questionnaires [17, 18]. Primary outcome Assessment of Interprofessional Team Collaboration Scale (AITCS) is a self-reported assessment of team collaboration for healthcare professionals [24]. A secondary outcome, Safety and Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ) is a self-reported assessment of attitude towards patient safety with 60 items to be rated on a 5point Likert scale, 5 = Agree strongly, 4 = Agree slightly, 3 = Neutral, 2 = Disagree slightly, 1 = Disagree strongly).
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