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Day J.1, Fell D.1, Kennedy E.1
1University of South Alabama, Physical Therapy, Mobile, United States
Background: Although the implementation of interprofessional education (IPE) and international service learning (ISL) has increased over the past decade in healthcare education programs, there has been limited evaluation and measurement of overall effectiveness when the two pedagogical approaches are combined. The Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) core competencies are widely accepted as a curricular guide.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a healthcare student's IPE/ISL experience by assessing the IPEC core competencies.
Methods: University professional students (n = 29) from the colleges of Allied Health Professions, Medicine, and Nursing, who volunteered for a 7-day international service learning experience in Trinidad with a local Christian ministry, participated in the study.
A convergent type of mixed methods research design was used. Prior to and following the international experience, participants completed two quantitative web-based surveys, the Interprofessional Education Collaborative Competency Survey (IPECC) and the Transcultural SelfEfficacy Tool- Multidisciplinary Healthcare Provider Version (TSET-MHP). The Wilcoxan Non-Parametric Test was used to analyze quantitative data. Qualitative data, guided by the critical incident technique, was obtained from diary entries of participants during the trip and a post-trip focus group with selected participants. The qualitative data was coded according to VE and RR domain competencies and converted to frequency counts of reported competency for each IPEC competency sub-item. Qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed separately followed by a consensus meeting of all researchers to merge findings for analysis and comparison.
Results: Quantitative: There was a significant improvement in all three cultural competency domains of the TSET-MHP (cognitive, practical, and affective) (p .001) when comparing pre- to post-questionnaire scores. Although there was improvement in all domains of the IPECC questionnaire, the differences were not significant. Qualitative: The most frequently noted sub-competencies in this sample were (VE5) the ability to work in cooperation with those who receive, provide, and support care; (RR3) the ability to engage diverse healthcare providers to complement ones own professional expertise; and (RR5) the ability to use the full scope of knowledge, skills, and abilities to provide optimal care that is safe, timely, efficient, effective, and equitable. The expression of competencies related to the ability to manage ethical dilemmas and the ability to maintain competency in ones own profession differed between the two data types.
Conclusion(s): Based on participant report, this international interprofessional clinical experience appears to be effective in enhancing health care competencies. Qualitative data suggests improvements in interprofessional core competencies The TSET-MHP survey revealed significant improvements in cultural competency which was reinforced through the data from journals and focus group.
Implications: Providing clinical care in an international service-learning experience helps to develop interprofessional competencies which students view as significant.
Funding acknowledgements: University of South Alabama Health Sciences Interprofessional Grant $4,500
Topic: Education
Ethics approval: The study protocol was approved by the University of South Alabamas Institutional Review Board. Subjects rights were protected.
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
