Journal of Academic Development and Education JADE Issue 9 | Page 14
HIGHLIGHT #2 | 15
JADE | 14
HIGHLIGHT #2
Title
Inter-professional learning
at Keele: physiotherapy
students' perceptions.
Authors
Valerie Ball, Aniksha Dhamelia, &
Elliot Rollason
DOI
http://dx.doi.org/10.21252/
KEELE-0000022
Contact
[email protected]
Keele University
Abstract
Context: The Faculty of Medicine
and Health Sciences Year 3
inter-professional education
(IPE) programme promotes
effective multi-disciplinary team
(MDT) working using group work
and reflective writing. Student
satisfaction monitored in module
evaluations had remained static
for five years. This small study
aimed to look in more depth at the
reasons for this.
Method: Two on line focus groups
of third year physiotherapy
students using a Keele Learning
Environment discussion board and
a closed Facebook group as means
of communication. Data was coded
for themes and subthemes
Results: All participants reported
positive experiences of MDT
working in clinical practice,
and they preferred to learn on
clinical placement rather than
in classroom based activities.
A minority of participants
considered writing reflections
for IPE was a positive learning
process.
Conclusions: The IPE programme
does not suit all types of learners
and this would account for the
static student satisfaction.
Keywords
Inter-professional education,
reflection, satisfaction.
Context and Objectives
Inter-professional education is
defined as ‘learning between
one or more health professions
during their training with
the aim of developing skills
for collaborative practice in
providing holistic patient-
centred health care’ (CAIPE,
2015).
Inter-professional
education (IPE) has been
embedded at Keele in the
undergraduate curricula of
the Faculty of Medicine and
Health Sciences since 2007.
It encourages collaboration
in health care by educating
students
from
different
professions together. (Cusack
and O'Donoghue, 2012).
Students in the first 2 years
of health curricula at Keele
are taught in small multi-
professional groups, this is
appropriate as students are
still identifying their own and
others roles. In contrast Year
3 of IPE is student lead and
requires a portfolio of evidence
(reflections) to be completed
during clinical placements to
demonstrate achievement of
the IPE3 learning outcomes.
This model allows flexibility
in the timing and location
of achieving each of the
outcomes, depending on the
student’s programme and
their individual experience.
Two thirds of IPE 3 module
evaluations completed by
medicine, midwifery, nursing
and physiotherapy students
in 2014/15 stated that the IPE
programme had prepared
them for multi-disciplinary
team (MDT) working. This
satisfaction rate had remained
static for five years. This small
study aimed to look in more
depth at the reasons for the
IPE 3 satisfaction.
Methods
Design
A set of open questions based
on the feedback from the
2014–15 IPE 3 evaluation was
constructed. Two separate
on-line focus groups were
set up, one using a Keele
Learning Environment (KLE)
discussion board and the
second a closed Facebook
(FB) group as means of
communication. Both groups
were open for one week
during January/February 2016
with participants responding
to other’s comments and
probing from the researchers.
Participants
Following ethical approval
from the School of Health
and Rehabilitation SPEC, 3rd
year physiotherapy students
were invited to participate by
year group email. Students
who had not experienced
a year 3 clinical placement
were excluded. Participants
consented using a Google
form.
Analysis
Analytical coding was applied
to the data from both groups
identifying themes and sub
themes which were used to
generate conclusions.
Results
Sixteen students participated;
INTER-PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AT KEELE:
PHYSIOTHERAPY STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS
eight in each group. The group characteristics can be seen in Table 1.:
KLE group
Gender
Home EU/
International
Facebook group
Male 4, Female 4 Male 4, Female 4
Home 2/International 6 Home 8/International 0
Table 1: Group characteristics
Higher order theme: Learning
Sub theme: The best place to learn MDT working
The participants considered that MDT working was best learnt in
the clinical arena. There were several reasons given: Three of the
participants described themselves as activist learners and therefore
‘doing’ was their preferred method of learning, while others required
context and saw effective MDT working as a skill needing practice.
• P16: ”MDT working skills are practical skills” KLE
• P4: “working within an MDT while on placement is 100% more
beneficial” FB
Participants commented on the classroom IPE opportunities:
• P11: “didn’t give a chance to explore how each of us think” KLE
• P7: “there was very little input from some members of certain
professions” FB
Sub theme: Reflection
Writing reflections for IPE 3 was seen as an academic task to be
completed by a small majority of participants rather than a learning
opportunity, summed up by:
• P2: “I don’t feel I get much out of writing reflections” FB
However a significant minority of participants did think the process
of writing reflections had a positive benefit that they could take
forward into their professional career:
• P13 “reflection can help me prepare and deal with situations
better if faced again” KLE
Higher order theme: Effective MDT working
The participants commented on their experience of teams working
well together: