Burke-Doe A1
1West Coast University, Physical Therapy, Los Angeles, United States
Background: Enhanced patient outcomes and accreditation criteria have led entry level Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) schools to integrate inter-professional education (IPE) into their curriculum. While several studies describe IPE curricula, few examine the professionals, location and timing of inter-professional learning (IPL) experiences during clinical rotations.
Purpose: To gain an understanding of opportunities and challenges in IPL experiences in various clinic settings during clinical internships. To determine professions involved in IPL, timing (synchronous/asynchronous) of IPL and to inform the profession where there is potential for improvement in improvement.
Methods: In this mixed methods study, we obtained IPE clinical experience data and survey results from entry level DPT students who were in an online IPE course during their final clinical rotation. Students were provided information sheets and IPE clinical experience forms that asked them to describe any IPE experiences in their current setting over a 4-week period including synchronous (co-treatments, shadowing, grand rounds, procedure observations, interdisciplinary meetings, surgery observations, space sharing, patient hand off, in-service, journal clubs, webinars) and asynchronous (electronic medical records, phone, fax, email) occurrences.
Results: Seventy-six DPT students participated in 383 IPL clinical experiences. Professions represented consisted of DPT, occupational therapy, speech language pathology, nursing, dietetics, midwifery, psychologist, psychiatrist, physician, pharmacy, respiratory therapy, orthotist/prosthetist, biomedical engineering, chiropractic, teaching, social work and radiology. Settings included acute care 13.21% (10), outpatient 57.89% (44), pediatrics 9.21% (7) and skilled nursing facilities 19.74% (7). Twenty-one percent of the IPL experiences were asynchronous occurring at different times and at same or different locations. Seventy-nine percent were synchronous occurring at the same time and same or different locations. IPL frequency and type depended on the setting. Most IPL experiences described were typical standard practice collaborations relating to different health care professions coming together to improve patient outcomes.
Conclusion(s): This study demonstrated that IPL experiences occur in many clinical settings, with a variety of professionals from different disciplines and primary synchronously. Most IPL experiences described were based on traditional practice collaborations. IPL experiences where teams are developed within the clinical setting may offer improved patient care.
Implications: IPE and IPL have recently been mandated by hospitals, universities and accrediting bodies. They are considered key components in improving patient care, outcomes and reducing costs. Improved understanding of clinical internships opportunities for IPE and IPL can assist in development of curriculum and quality clinical experiences.
Keywords: Inter-professional Education, Inter-professional Learning, Physical Therapy
Funding acknowledgements: None
Purpose: To gain an understanding of opportunities and challenges in IPL experiences in various clinic settings during clinical internships. To determine professions involved in IPL, timing (synchronous/asynchronous) of IPL and to inform the profession where there is potential for improvement in improvement.
Methods: In this mixed methods study, we obtained IPE clinical experience data and survey results from entry level DPT students who were in an online IPE course during their final clinical rotation. Students were provided information sheets and IPE clinical experience forms that asked them to describe any IPE experiences in their current setting over a 4-week period including synchronous (co-treatments, shadowing, grand rounds, procedure observations, interdisciplinary meetings, surgery observations, space sharing, patient hand off, in-service, journal clubs, webinars) and asynchronous (electronic medical records, phone, fax, email) occurrences.
Results: Seventy-six DPT students participated in 383 IPL clinical experiences. Professions represented consisted of DPT, occupational therapy, speech language pathology, nursing, dietetics, midwifery, psychologist, psychiatrist, physician, pharmacy, respiratory therapy, orthotist/prosthetist, biomedical engineering, chiropractic, teaching, social work and radiology. Settings included acute care 13.21% (10), outpatient 57.89% (44), pediatrics 9.21% (7) and skilled nursing facilities 19.74% (7). Twenty-one percent of the IPL experiences were asynchronous occurring at different times and at same or different locations. Seventy-nine percent were synchronous occurring at the same time and same or different locations. IPL frequency and type depended on the setting. Most IPL experiences described were typical standard practice collaborations relating to different health care professions coming together to improve patient outcomes.
Conclusion(s): This study demonstrated that IPL experiences occur in many clinical settings, with a variety of professionals from different disciplines and primary synchronously. Most IPL experiences described were based on traditional practice collaborations. IPL experiences where teams are developed within the clinical setting may offer improved patient care.
Implications: IPE and IPL have recently been mandated by hospitals, universities and accrediting bodies. They are considered key components in improving patient care, outcomes and reducing costs. Improved understanding of clinical internships opportunities for IPE and IPL can assist in development of curriculum and quality clinical experiences.
Keywords: Inter-professional Education, Inter-professional Learning, Physical Therapy
Funding acknowledgements: None
Topic: Education: clinical; Education
Ethics approval required: Yes
Institution: West Coast University
Ethics committee: IRB
Ethics number: 43203
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
