Interprofessional Activities Research Articles

Clinical pharmacists' participation in ward rounds in hospitals: responses from a national survey.

The inclusion of clinical pharmacists in ward rounds (WRs) can reduce adverse drug events, improve communication and enable collaborative decision-making. The aim of this study is to investigate the level of and factors that influence WR participation by clinical pharmacists in Australia. An online administered, anonymous survey of clinical pharmacists in Australia was conducted. The survey was open to pharmacists aged ≥18 years, who had worked in an Australian hospital in a clinical role in the previous two weeks. It was distributed via The Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia and on pharmacist-specific social media threads. Survey questions related to the extent of WR participation and factors that influence WR participation. Cross-tabulation analysis was conducted to determine whether there was an association between WR participation and factors that influence WR participation. Ninety-nine responses were included. The level of WR participation by clinical pharmacists in Australian hospitals was low, with only 26/67 (39%) pharmacists who had a WR in their clinical unit actually attending the WR in the previous 2 weeks. Factors that influenced WR participation included having recognition of the role of the clinical pharmacist within the WR team, support from pharmacy management and the broader interprofessional team, and having adequate time and expectation from pharmacy management and colleagues to participate in WRs. This study highlights the need for ongoing interventions such as restructuring workflows and increasing the awareness of the role of a clinical pharmacist in WR to increase participation of pharmacists in this interprofessional activity.

A comparison of medical and pharmacy student perspectives of a clinical interprofessional home-visit versus a virtual interprofessional workshop.

Background: No Place Like Home is a clinical interprofessional education (IPE) activity whereby pharmacy and medical students conduct home visits under the guidance and supervision of a clinical preceptor to homebound patients. Purpose: We examined pharmacy and medical student perceptions of mastery of interprofessional competencies during an in-person clinical home visit pre-COVID-19 pandemic versus a virtual IPE learning activity consisting of didactic and case discussions in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We administered the same modified Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Survey (ICCAS) instrument, which uses a five-point Likert scale, to both the in-person and the virtual IPE students following their learning activity. Results: We received a total of 459 completed survey responses with an overall response rate of 84%. For both groups of students, the in-person format was preferred, however, to our surprise, the results indicated that students in the virtual group reported greater perceived gain in interprofessional skills than students in the in-person group. In addition, pharmacy students perceived greater gain from the interprofessional activity and offered more thoughtful reflections about their experience. Conclusions: Even though both groups of students preferred the in-person visit, the IPE objectives were equally (for medical students) or better (for pharmacy students) absorbed in the virtual environment than the in-person clinical home visit.

Activities to Promote Interprofessional Practice at Primary Healthcare Level: A Systematic Review

Currently, there is a trend towards interprofessional practice. Consequently, healthcare professionals must devise strategies to deal with the challenges faced in the public health sector. Investigating the ways in which healthcare professionals promote interprofessional care principles to manage patient care outcomes is crucial. Primary healthcare is a significant level of health service delivery, therefore, the implementation of interprofessional practice at this level is especially important. In this review, we aim to explore and describe the activities outlined in the literature, which are used to promote interprofessional practice at primary healthcare level. A systematic search of seven databases was conducted for articles published between 2008 and 2021. All articles with a quantitative, qualitative or mixed methodology, a primary healthcare facility study setting, and full-text availability were included. A methodological appraisal tool was adapted from the RE-AIM framework. Twelve studies were included in the final review. Interprofessional clinics, interprofessional collaborative practices, collaborative care processes, and interprofessional team training were the primary activities identified in the review. These studies aimed to promote interprofessional practice in healthcare settings through various activities. There was limited information regarding the efficiency of the activities. According to the findings, undertaking interprofessional collaborative practice models appears to be the most practicable strategy for implementing interprofessional activities. It is crucial that facility management support this endeavour for its implementation to be successful.

An interprofessional initiative to improve the “drop to shock” interval on a college campus

This project engaged healthcare students in an interprofessional (IP) activity to design a program to increase awareness of automated external defibrillators device locations on campus. A Plan-Do-Study-Act approach was used. We highlight how an IP activity can be used for collaboration to solve a healthcare related problem in a creative manner. Engaging health professions students in projects promotes IP skills, teamwork, and communication and will better prepare students for future careers in healthcare.

Pharmacy student self-assessment of interprofessional behaviors in inpatient general medicine advanced pharmacy practice experiences

IntroductionThe World Health Organization defines interprofessional education (IPE) “as an experience where students from two or more professions learn about, from, and with each other to…improve health outcomes.”1 Recent studies have demonstrated that IPE experiences can produce positive outcomes, and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education Accreditation Standards require IPE experiences to be incorporated in both didactic and experiential components of pharmacy curricula. The purpose of this study was to measure the impact of required rotation interprofessional activities on fourth-year pharmacy students' self-assessment of interprofessional collaboration behaviors. MethodsThis was an ambidirectional cohort study conducted among students enrolled in their inpatient general medicine advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) at the University of Texas at El Paso School of Pharmacy during academic year 2020–2021. Students completed the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) competency self-assessment instrument at the beginning and end of their six-week APPE. The survey instrument assessed IPEC competencies in the four IPE domains. ResultsDuring the 2020–2021 academic year, 29 APPE pharmacy students completed the pre- and post-assessment during their inpatient general medicine APPE. There was a significant increase (P < .001) in IPEC scores from baseline to post-assessment in each domain. ConclusionsStudents had a positive change in interprofessional collaboration behaviors after completing the required IPE on their inpatient general medicine APPE, which is consistent with prior studies.While students' perceived IPE behaviors improved, further research is needed to elucidate the value of IPE learning activities and impact on learning outcomes.

A Proposed Framework for Interprofessional Curriculum Integration

Within health professional education, an integrated curriculum is not uncommon, yet clarity with integrating interprofessional activities into uniprofessional curricula remains elusive. This paper hopes to open a dialogue about approaches to the integration of interprofessional competency development within health professions curricula. An Interprofessional Framework for Curricular Integration is proposed as a means to support educators with reflecting on their current interprofessional activities, and to identify possible ways to achieve greater integration within their own uniprofessional programs. The framework highlights the explicit roles of educators and patient partners in the design and delivery of the interprofessional experience to support the students’ learning. Exploring integration approaches of interprofessional experiences in uniprofessional curriculum allows the opportunity to examine ways to optimally integrate development of interprofessional collaborative practice knowledge, skills and attitudes, and better ensure that our health professions programs prepare collaborative-ready health professionals who function effectively within complex health systems.

Lessons learnt from facilitating care home placements for counselling and psychotherapy students during the COVID‐19 pandemic

AbstractPurposeIn 2021, an opportunity arose to place four counselling and psychotherapy (C&amp;P) students in three care homes across Greater Manchester as part of a 6‐week interprofessional education (IPE) care home scheme. Whilst, due to ethical concerns around confidentiality, the C&amp;P students could not participate in interprofessional activities as intended, they still undertook their clinical placement in the home to provide accessible therapy support for care home staff. This paper aims at reporting on the varied factors that influenced the implementation of C&amp;P student placements in care homes.MethodsAt the start and end of their placement, four C&amp;P students were interviewed about their experiences. We draw on data from these eight interviews and two reflective vignettes: one from a C&amp;P student and the other from the C&amp;P programme coordinator (C&amp;PPC).ResultsThe data were thematically analysed, and two key themes and six subthemes were constructed. They broadly unpack the factors that facilitate and challenge the implementation of C&amp;P student placements in care homes.ConclusionThis paper highlights the value of utilising care homes as placement sites for C&amp;P students. We propose four key recommendations for future practice: (1) it is important to establish clear lines of communication, support and collaboration; (2) a dual‐space supervisory approach supports student learning in this “new” placement environment; (3) preplacement supportive frameworks are important to clarify initial role uncertainties within the care home; and (4) opportunities to provide therapy services should be well defined and referral processes put in place before the student arrives.

Evaluating an interprofessional pharmacy and dental hygiene case-based learning activity with student reflections

Background and purposeInterprofessional collaboration between dentistry and pharmacy has great value but is often lacking in didactic and experiential education, particularly in dental hygiene programs. Educational activity and settingA case-based interprofessional assignment was implemented into the dental hygiene curriculum. Students reflected on their experiences and completed the International Collaborative Competencies Attainment Survey (ICCAS) to assess changes in self-reported interprofessional competencies following the activity. FindingsReflections revealed knowledge gain themes, with medication-related oral health concerns most frequent (53), followed by systemic adverse effects of medications (31), impact of systemic health on oral health (21), drug-drug interactions (17), and drug information (2). Additionally, students identified both future plans to collaborate with a pharmacist (25) and application of clinical knowledge gained (25). Scores from the ICCAS increased significantly in most of the domain statements following the interprofessional activity. DiscussionThis interprofessional education (IPE) activity increased student knowledge of the pharmacy profession and provided an experience with interprofessional communication. Students identified the impact of medications on oral health, as well as the value of interprofessional collaboration and communication. SummaryThis IPE activity positively impacted student perceptions of interprofessional collaboration with pharmacists.

Interprofessional education: the attitude among students of health science bachelor's degree programmes at universities of applied sciences in Austria / Interprofessionelle Ausbildung: Die Einstellung der Studierenden gesundheitswissenschaftlicher Bachelor-Studiengänge an österreichischen Fachhochschulen

Abstract Introduction Interprofessional collaboration is a strategy to meet the challenges of increasing complexity in the health system. The basis for cooperation in professional life must already be established in the context of interprofessional education (IPE). Students’ attitude towards IPE is a crucial factor in the development of interprofessional competences. The aim of this study is to investigate the attitude towards interprofessional education among students of health science bachelor's degree programmes at selected universities of applied sciences in Austria. Method An empirical, quantitative, non-experimental approach in the form of a cross-sectional study was chosen, with the survey being carried out online using the questionnaire University of the West of England Interprofessional Questionnaire © (Pollard et al., 2004) in its German translation von Mahler et al. (2017), as a self-assessment measuring instrument to investigate the students’ attitude towards communication and teamwork, interprofessional learning and interprofessional interaction. The data evaluation was both descriptive and analytical. Results 505 students from nine different health science degree programmes participated in the survey. 79 % (n = 504) rate their communication and teamwork skills positively and 76.6 % (n = 505) have a positive attitude towards interprofessional learning. However, only 8 % (n = 396) have a positive opinion on interprofessional interaction. In the group comparisons, significant differences are observed between the various study programmes, semesters of study and previous professional experience. Conclusion The knowledge of the attitude towards IPE should be considered when designing interprofessional activities during the course of studies in order to influence the students’ attitude positively.

Use of the National Institutes of Health pain education cases to frame an interprofessional activity with healthcare professional students

Creating authentic learning experiences in pain education is both challenging and important for healthcare educators. While didactic lecture about pain management is a common pedagogical approach, interactive experiences are less common due to the need for high level coordination. The purpose of this article is to share an interactive educational activity designed to build student understanding of treatment for persistent pain. Interprofessional (IP) groups discussed respective roles and responsibilities during a case-based care team meeting and created a comprehensive care plan for a patient experiencing pain using contemporary cases, based in practice. Students utilized knowledge obtained from their professional coursework and experience from preliminary clinical experience to share with other healthcare professional students their discipline-specific perspective on treating persistent pain. Through sharing of scope of practice information and discipline specific experience, the IP groups created an extensive and collaborative pain management plan. Outcomes of the activity included a presentation of the case, use of ISBAR (Identity, Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) and assessment of their own learning and evaluation of the activity.

Exploring interprofessional collaboration during the implementation of a parent-infant mental health service: A qualitative study

ABSTRACT We examined interprofessional working in a newly implemented parent-infant mental health service team supporting families experiencing bonding and attachment difficulties. The aim was to identify forms of interprofessional work undertaken, barriers and facilitators of this work, and families’ and healthcare professionals’ perceptions of it. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 21 stakeholders (5 parents, 4 team clinicians, 9 service referrers, 3 service commissioners) and were analyzed thematically. Interprofessional activities identified included building the service team’s cohesion and shared practice, building partner networks, interagency communication, coordination of roles, and raising awareness of infant mental health and parent-infant relationship needs. Enablers and barriers to interprofessional working were broadly consistent with findings from previous studies of related services, but with additional emphasis on consultative work as an enabler. Healthcare professionals reported benefiting from the case consultations and training on infant mental health provided by the service team. Parents reported that good interprofessional working enhanced satisfaction and engagement with the service. Findings indicate the centrality of interprofessional working for parent-infant mental health teams, with implications for future service implementation, service development, and understanding of mechanisms by which such services may influence family outcomes.

Development and implementation of interprofessional education activity among health professions students in Jordan: A pilot investigation

ABSTRACT Implementing interprofessional education (IPE) in health professions curricula requires considerations of students’ attitudes and readiness. Interventional studies that assess students’ perceptions about IPE are needed. As IPE is an emerging concept in Jordan, our study aimed at exploring the attitudes of health profession students about IPE and collaborative practice before and after implementing an IPE activity. Students completed the validated Interprofessional Attitudes Scale (IPAS) before and after completing a 3-hour interprofessional activity. Students’ attitudes toward IPE were compared using the subscales and total IPAS scores. A total of 41 health profession students attending the professional health programs of Doctor of Pharmacy, Medicine, Nursing, Nutrition, or Pharmacy completed IPAS before and after conducting the interprofessional activity. Students reported positive attitudes toward IPE prior to the activity. Significant increases were observed in IPAS scores from pre- (median [interquartile range: IQR] score = 4.19 [0.61]) to post-activity (median [IQR] = 4.48 [0.65]), and in its subscales (teamwork, roles and responsibilities, diversity and ethics, and community-centeredness). Students’ experience with the IPE activity was positive and optimistic. The findings revealed for the first time the perception and readiness of health profession students toward IPE and collaborative practice in Jordan. This readiness can help draw a path for strategic integration of IPE in health profession curricula.

Ten Lessons Learned in the Implementation of Mobile, Community-Based Interprofessional Clinics.

Incorporation of interprofessional activities within health profession programs is critical to prepare students for practice. Faculty at our institution saw a need to incorporate interprofessional education in the nursing, pharmacy, social work, and dietetics program curricula. We collaborated with a medical school in the area to develop a mobile, community-based interprofessional clinic to deliver care and education and address the needs of older adults while also providing unique, meaningful learning opportunities for students. We describe several lessons learned from our experience of developing and implementing this interprofessional clinic.

An online escape room used to support the growth of teamwork in health professions students.

Effective teamwork in the online environment is essential to patient care and safety. The need for training health professionals to work together on a virtual interprofessional team has become even more important since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as telehealth, or the provision of virtual healthcare to patients, has become more common. This resource describes the development of an online escape room activity using free online resources. The activity aimed to enhance health profession students’ abilities to communicate effectively, work together to complete a task, and develop knowledge of the unique roles of healthcare team members in a course dedicated to interprofessional education. Teams of five to seven students met online and completed seven puzzles to escape a virtual room. Results obtained from the pre-post surveys of 176 students across six disciplines showed the activity aided in increasing participants perceptions of their ability to communicate respectfully and work together to complete a task, while developing knowledge of the unique roles of members of the healthcare team, all components of the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) Core Competencies. This activity lays the groundwork for collaborative, interprofessional activities, such as telehealth, which students will be exposed to in their futures, and the results infer that the activity can help to build collaboration among team members, even team members that are not in the same physical space.

Current status of interprofessional education learning activities in wards provided by tertiary hospitals and secondary general hospitals and barriers

Current status of interprofessional education learning activities in wards provided by tertiary hospitals and secondary general hospitals and barriers

Development and implementation of a virtual interprofessional escape room to reinforce tobacco cessation concepts

It is vital that healthcare professionals work together in a concentrated effort to help patients achieve tobacco cessation. As such, it is essential that students in health professions programs learn the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) core competencies of collaborative practice including communication, teamwork , values and ethics, and professional roles and responsibilities to be effective members of patient care teams. This article describes the development and implementation of an interactive, virtual escape room instructional activity that reinforced important tobacco cessation concepts with pharmacy, dental, dental hygiene and physician assistant students . Interprofessional groups consisted of 6–7 students, and students were given 60 min to work through thirteen escape room puzzles to solve two patient cases related to tobacco cessation and to successfully escape. Puzzle concepts included pharmacology, contraindications and dosing of medications, drug-drug interactions, behavioral modifications, health risks associated with tobacco use, motivational interviewing, risks of vaping, vaccines and neurobiology of addiction. One hundred and thirty-five students participated in the interprofessional activity, and students completed pre- and post-surveys to assess knowledge gains and perceptions of the virtual escape room. Students reported an improvement in four interprofessional competencies of collaborative practice, and knowledge improved on all twelve conceptual questions, with seven questions showing statistically significant improvements. Student perceptions of the escape room were overall positive, with 84% of students reporting that they will use knowledge that they gained from the escape room in their professional practice. In conclusion, the use of this educational instructional activity was an effective way to reinforce and emphasize important tobacco cessation concepts and to promote the core competencies of interprofessional education and practice. Allowing students to work together and recognize the contributions of different members of the healthcare team has vital implications for helping patients achieve tobacco cessation, which has the potential to improve patient health, reduce healthcare costs and prevent both acute and chronic diseases.

Patient-centered simulation: Practicing interprofessional teamwork with standardized patients

ABSTRACT The simulation environment provides opportunities for students to practice interprofessional skills in an authentic, yet safe setting. We discuss an interprofessional learning activity called Team Care Planning designed to teach interprofessional teamwork using a simulated discharge meeting involving an elderly female patient who had a cerebral vascular accident (stroke) and her adult daughter, played by standardized patients Interprofessional teams of health professions students work together to discuss the discharge plan and meet with the patient/family. Teamwork is evaluated using the Jefferson Teamwork Observation Guide®, completed by the students, faculty observers, and standardized patients. Students also report their perception of knowledge and skills gained from the interprofessional activity in an electronic evaluation. Analysis of the data indicates the initial goals of the program are being met. Students report greater understanding of roles/responsibilities of team members; and students, faculty, and standardized patients rate the experience high in terms of the quality of the teamwork. Debriefing with faculty observers promotes student reflection on performance. Receiving feedback from the standardized patients informs student personal and professional development.

Medication reconciliation at hospital discharge: A qualitative exploration of acute care nurses' perceptions of their roles and responsibilities.

Safe medication management is a cornerstone of nursing practice. Nurses prepare patients for discharge which includes the ongoing safe administration of medications. Medication reconciliation at hospital discharge is an interprofessional activity that helps to identify and rectify medication discrepancies or errors to ensure the accuracy and completeness of discharge medications and information. Nurses have a role in medication safety; however, their involvement in medication reconciliation at hospital discharge is poorly described. The study's aim was to describe acute care nurses' perceptions of their roles and responsibilities in medication reconciliation at hospital discharge, including barriers and enablers. Using focus groups, this exploratory descriptive study gathered qualitative data from nurses working in five acute care clinical units (medical, surgical and transit/discharge lounge) at a tertiary Australian hospital. The data were analysed using inductive content analysis and reported following the COREQ checklist. Thirty-two nurses were recruited. Three themes emerged from the data: nurses' medication reconciliation role involves chasing, checking and educating; burden of undertaking medication reconciliation at hospital discharge; team collaboration and communication in medication reconciliation. Nurses had a minor role in medication reconciliation at hospital discharge due to a lack of organisation clinical practice guidance and specialised training. Standardising interprofessional medication reconciliation processes and increasing nurses' involvement will help to streamline this task, reduce discharge delays, workload pressure and improve patient safety. Medication reconciliation at hospital discharge is an interprofessional patient safety activity, however little is known about nurse's role and responsibilities. This study reports nurses' important contribution to patient safety in terms of healthcare team coordination, medication checking and patient education. Supportive organisations and collaborative teams increased nurses' willingness to complete this activity.

Mixed reality-based online interprofessional education: a case study in South Korea.

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore undergraduate medical and nursing students’ satisfaction with their mixed reality (MR)-based online interprofessional learning experience in South Korea.MethodsThis study used a case study design. A convenience sample of 30 participants (i.e., 15 third-year medical students and 15 fourth-year nursing students) participated in a 120-minute MR-based online interprofessional education (IPE) that consisted of visualization of holographic standardized patient with ischemic stroke, online interprofessional activity, and debriefing and reflection sessions. Following the MR-based online IPE, data were collected through Modified Satisfaction with Simulation Experience Scale survey and were analyzed using descriptive analyses and independent t-tests.ResultsAlthough medical and nursing students were highly satisfied with MR-based online interprofessional learning experience, nursing students were significantly more satisfied with it compared with medical students.ConclusionThese results suggest that the integration of MR and online approach through the structured clinical reasoning process in undergraduate health professions programs can be used as an educational strategy to improve clinical reasoning and critical thinking and to promote interprofessional understanding.

Occupational therapists’ experiences of implementing occupation-based practice in neurology, and its impact on professional identity

Introduction Facilitating engagement in meaningful occupations underpins occupational therapy intervention. Occupation-based practice, while linked to improved professional identity and job satisfaction for occupational therapists, is challenging to implement, particularly in hospital settings. This study aimed to explore occupational therapists’ perceptions of their role, and facilitators and challenges to implementing occupation-based practice in neurology. Method This qualitative descriptive study included semi-structured interviews with seven occupational therapists working in Australian acute/sub-acute neurology settings. Findings Three themes identified: Conceptualisation versus implementation of occupation-based practice; Use of occupation-based practice impacts role satisfaction; Promoting the profession. Participants described using occupations in their practice as important, however, reported that the challenges of the neurology environment hindered their ability to carry out occupation-based practice. Conclusion This study provides insights into occupational therapist’s perceptions regarding occupation-based practice in neurology settings, finding there is a need for occupational therapists to promote their role and use of occupations in neurology settings, and that occupation-based practice impacts job satisfaction. The study highlights occupational therapists working in neurology settings would benefit from a number of approaches including student interprofessional activities, potential buddy system for new graduates and experienced clinicians, and increased support by the profession to maintain their identity as occupation-based specialists.