The good enough facilitator: exploring online interprofessional therapeutic facilitation in times of COVID-19

ABSTRACT

In the time of COVID-19, universities have been forced to engage with online learning more than ever before. The facilitator is a key player in the orchestration of online learning and as such, this paper seeks to present a radical reworking of the Garrison and Archer Community of Inquiry model that emphasizes the importance of a therapeutic presence in online interprofessional facilitation. Drawn from a strand of inductive empirical qualitative research based on 15 years’ experience of online interprofessional education, this paper employs a therapeutic lens to propose the good enough facilitator as a theoretical construct that emphasizes the importance of the facilitator understanding when to intervene and when to retreat within the online space. Online interprofessional asynchronous discussion groups are explored to illustrate the value of the good enough facilitator in online learning.

KEYWORDS:

• Facilitation
• online learning
• interprofessional education
• therapeutic

Declaration of interest

The author reports no conflicts of interest. The author alone is solely responsible for the content and writing of this article. The research was not funded.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Patricia Bluteau

Patricia Bluteau is an Associate Head of School in the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health at Coventry University. She is a registered  Mental Health Nurse and has been instrumental in leading  the strategic development of interprofessional education since 2002. She is interested in progressing knowledge regarding online interprofessional education and has published widely in this field. She is a member of the CAIPE executive and Board.