TY - JOUR
T1 - Design and Evaluation of Interprofessional Training Program for Healthcare Students from Collectivistic Culture
AU - Raj, Sonika
AU - Kelly, Dervla
AU - Siddig, Muizz I.
AU - Muppidi, Pranjali
AU - O’Connor, Chris
AU - Mckeague, Helena
AU - Dixon, Mark
AU - Alshahrani, Mastour S.
AU - Alhazmi, Amani
AU - Elmusharaf, Khalifa
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s).
PY - 2022/4
Y1 - 2022/4
N2 - Background: Healthcare is team-based, and with increased mobility of healthcare workers, most of them will work with team members from all over the globe. Interprofessional education (IPE) research has mostly focused on specially designed programs in academic health institutions to prepare students for multidisciplinary work. Few IPE programs aim to integrate students with mixed disciplines from collectivist cultures. Methods: This mixed-methods study was conducted between June and August 2019. Surveys and an e-portfolio were recorded of 33 final-year and graduated health professional students’ participation in an 8-week IPE summer program at a medical school in Ireland. Survey results are described, and the content of portfolios was analyzed based on the deductive analysis of qualitative data derived from questions. Results: Students reported the greatest improvement in presentation skills (63.6%), followed by communication (54.5%), team working skills (93.9%), and interprofessional learning (42.4%), respectively. Qualitative findings highlighted challenges for students from a collectivist culture adapting to an IPE: uncomfortable verbally expressing themselves in problem-based learning (PBL) and how to work with other sex. Positive themes about IPE that emerged were enjoyment in sharing ideas and building trust with PBL groups. We learned that the program had to be flexible enough to meet the educational requirements of a target community with mixed English language ability and adaptability to IPE. Conclusion: The authors propose that an international PBL-based summer program is effective in improving healthcare students’ attitudes towards IPE. This study provides valuable insights to facilitate the development of further IPE programs to increased collaboration between students across various healthcare disciplines.
AB - Background: Healthcare is team-based, and with increased mobility of healthcare workers, most of them will work with team members from all over the globe. Interprofessional education (IPE) research has mostly focused on specially designed programs in academic health institutions to prepare students for multidisciplinary work. Few IPE programs aim to integrate students with mixed disciplines from collectivist cultures. Methods: This mixed-methods study was conducted between June and August 2019. Surveys and an e-portfolio were recorded of 33 final-year and graduated health professional students’ participation in an 8-week IPE summer program at a medical school in Ireland. Survey results are described, and the content of portfolios was analyzed based on the deductive analysis of qualitative data derived from questions. Results: Students reported the greatest improvement in presentation skills (63.6%), followed by communication (54.5%), team working skills (93.9%), and interprofessional learning (42.4%), respectively. Qualitative findings highlighted challenges for students from a collectivist culture adapting to an IPE: uncomfortable verbally expressing themselves in problem-based learning (PBL) and how to work with other sex. Positive themes about IPE that emerged were enjoyment in sharing ideas and building trust with PBL groups. We learned that the program had to be flexible enough to meet the educational requirements of a target community with mixed English language ability and adaptability to IPE. Conclusion: The authors propose that an international PBL-based summer program is effective in improving healthcare students’ attitudes towards IPE. This study provides valuable insights to facilitate the development of further IPE programs to increased collaboration between students across various healthcare disciplines.
KW - Collectivistic culture
KW - Healthcare students
KW - Interprofessional education
KW - Multidisciplinary learning
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85127242787&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s40670-022-01536-7
DO - 10.1007/s40670-022-01536-7
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85127242787
SN - 2156-8650
VL - 32
SP - 447
EP - 455
JO - Medical Science Educator
JF - Medical Science Educator
IS - 2
ER -