Date Presented 04/04/19
Innovative teaching methods can be used to increase student self-efficacy and preparedness for acute-care clinical situations. We found that combining interprofessional simulation and peer teaching was an effective experiential learning method for improving student understanding of the roles of other professions in an acute-care environment and increasing appreciation of the need for communication, collaboration, and respect for optimal teamwork.
Primary Author and Speaker: Veronica Rowe
Additional Authors and Speakers: Emily Millard, Chelsea Clarkson
PURPOSE: There is consensus that simulation should be leveraged with interprofessional education (IPE). Simulation based IPE has been shown to be an effective teaching strategy for improving teamwork, communication, and collaboration among health profession students. It can increase student self-efficacy and preparedness for clinical situations (Poore, Cullen, and Schaar, 2014). Additionally, interprofessional peer teaching can be an effective tool for improving communication and developing increased understanding of other professions’ roles (Dunleavy, Galen, Reid, Dhar, and DiZazzo-Miller, 2017). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of combining IPE simulation and peer teaching on students’ attitudes, values, and beliefs regarding interprofessional collaboration.
DESIGN: Using a pretest / posttest design, students completed the Performance Assessment Communication and Teamwork Tool (PACT) (Chiu, et al., n.d.). The sum of scores for each content area of the PACT were analyzed using mixed model ANOVAs.
METHOD: A novel IPE simulation experience was employed where nursing students (n=76) developed, implemented, and participated in simulation scenarios designed to replicate an acute care setting. During the simulation experiences, PT (n=53) and OT (n=48) students worked together to co-treat the patients while consulting with the nursing student role-playing the staff nurse. With faculty guidance, nursing students were also responsible for equipment management, pre-briefing, running the simulation scenarios, and de-briefing. The PACT was used as the outcome measure because it is specifically developed to assess teamwork and communication performance in simulated environments.
RESULTS: All students regardless of profession, demonstrated a significant increase in post-test scores compared to pre-test scores for following content areas: familiarity working and training in teams (p<0.001), satisfaction with interprofessional training (p<0.001), learning and performance (p<0.001), learning environment (p<0.001), skills (p<0.001), mutual support (p=0.017), and communication (p<0.001). For the content areas that did not demonstrate a significant increase in scores (benefits of training, team structure, leadership, and situation monitoring) students scored very highly on the pre-assessment (>4.25 for all questions on a 1-5 scale) creating a ceiling effect.
When analyzing the PACT post-assessment free response question “What is the most important learning experience you took away…” four themes emerged: 1) The need for teamwork and collaboration for effective patient care 2) The importance of communication to develop a plan of care 3) Increased understanding of the roles of other professions 4) The importance of respect and trust in interprofessional teams.
The PACT also has students rate their understanding of the IPE experience on training for each of the following categories: benefits of IPE, patient safety, sharing information, shared mental model, patient advocacy, offering assistance, and communication. All students exhibited significantly higher scores for the post-test training questions compared to the pre-test training questions (p < 0.001), and no significant differences were found between professions.
CONCLUSION: Combining interprofessional simulation and peer teaching was an effective way to improve student attitudes, values, and beliefs regarding interprofessional collaboration and increase understanding of professional roles. The experience had similar effects on students’ perceptions of IPE regardless of whether they participated in the peer-teaching role or in the simulation participant role.
References
Poore, J.A., Cullen, D.L., and Schaar, G.L. (2014). Simulation-based interprofessional education guided by Kolb’s experiential learning theory. Clinical Simulation in Nursing. 10(5):e241-e247. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecns.2014.01.004
Dunleavy, K., Galen, S., Reid, K., Dhar, J.P., and DiZazzo-Miller, R. (2017). Impact of interprofessional peer teaching on physical and occupational therapy student's professional role identity. Journal of Interprofessional Education and Practice. 6:1-5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2016.10.006
Chiu, C.J., Brock, D., Abu-Rish, E., et al. (n.d.) Performance Assessment of Communication and Teamwork (PACT) Tool Set. http://collaborate.uw.edu/educators-toolkit/interprofessional-simulation-team-training-faculty-toolkit/prepost-assessment-tool.
