The Effects of Simulation Problem-Based Learning on the Empathy, Attitudes toward Caring for the Elderly, and Team Efficacy of Undergraduate Health Profession Students.

Hae-Kyoung Son

doi:10.3390/ijerph18189658

Abstract

Undergraduate students studying health professions receive a uniprofessional education in an isolated educational environment within the university curriculum, and they have limited opportunities to experience collaborative learning through interactions with other professions. This study adopted a one-group, pretest–posttest, quasi-experimental design to investigate the effect of an undergraduate course that applied simulation problem-based learning (S-PBL) on nursing and dental hygiene students’ empathy, attitudes toward caring for the elderly, and team efficacy. The S-PBL was designed based on the ARCS model of motivation proposed by Keller, and the subjects (n = 24) participated in a small group activity of identifying and checking for medical errors that may pose a threat to patients’ safety. The results showed that there was a statistically significant increase in the subjects’ attitudes toward caring for the elderly (t = 3.11, p = 0.01) and team efficacy (t = 2.84, p = 0.01) after participating in the S-PBL. The teaching method developed by this study aims to counteract the problems of the limited experience available to undergraduate health profession students during clinical practicum in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the limitations of interprofessional education, and it has established the groundwork for further exploration of the learning transfer effect of S-PBL.

Highlights

The discipline of health profession studies underlines the value of interpersonal relationships
This study investigates the effect of interprofessional education (IPE)-based simulation problem-based learning (S-PBL) on the empathy, attitudes toward caring for the elderly, and team efficacy of health profession undergraduates, presenting an educational foundation from which to provide high-quality services in a complex health care system
This study investigates the effect of an S-PBL applied curriculum that focuses on the empathy, attitudes toward caring for the elderly, and team efficacy of undergraduate health profession students

Summary

Introduction

The discipline of health profession studies underlines the value of interpersonal relationships. Undergraduate students of health professions, including nursing and dental hygiene, have received a uniprofessional education in an isolated educational environment within the university curriculum, and they have limited opportunities to experience collaborative learning through interactions with other professions [3,4]. Some of the main challenges to IPE are crowded timetables and simultaneous movement of students and faculties for similar classes among other health professions [6]. The difficulties of experiencing direct interactions with various health professions in clinical settings have been compounded [7,8]. Patients’ symptoms have been increasing in variety, complexity, and severity, requiring close collaboration between health professions to derive optimal clinical outcomes [9,10].

Results

Discussion

Conclusion