Seeing the patient as a person in interprofessional health professions education

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Box I – The PAP-educational module explained A PAP-group consists of sixteen participants, twelve of whom are students from different backgrounds (medicine, health sciences, European public health, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, nursing, speech therapy, art therapy, and home care provision). Four people with chronic illness, the EBEs, complement the group, occasionally accompanied by an informal caregiver. In three meetings, spanning four weeks, the module aims to increase (a) students’ insight into the impact of illness on physical, mental, and social dimensions of health, (b) insight into the importance of a compassionate approach to patients, and (c) students’ understanding of other disciplines and their collaborative value to improve health outcomes. The role of EBEs is to share how illness has impacted their lives and the lives of loved ones. Additionally, they discuss positive and negative experiences with healthcare professionals and the organization of health care. Teachers act as facilitators of the group discussion during the first and third meetings. They moderate the meetings and have no traditional role as teachers in terms of transferring knowledge. Meeting 1, plenary (2 hours, introduction). In the first meeting, the group meets at one of the participating educational institutions. The first session aims to: (a) establish an atmosphere of trust amongst students, EBEs and the facilitator and (b) discuss the person-centeredness of care and specifically the competencies required for the delivery of person-centered care. Meeting 2, subgroups (one day part, visiting EBE). Three students from different professional backgrounds visit one EBE at a location of the EBEs choice. In these groups of four, the EBE shares how disease has impacted the physical, mental, and social aspects of his or her well-being. Moreover, the EBE reflects on how healthcare professionals have addressed these dimensions and provides suggestions for future improvements in professional-patient collaboration. Students are encouraged to ask questions to the EBEs regarding the impact of illness.

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Reflective assignment. After meeting 2, students write a reflective essay in which they elaborate on (a) how they intend to cater to patients’ needs concerning the mental and social impact of health in their future work and (b) whether they could identify discrepancies between their perspectives and those of the students of other professions. Moreover, (c) they reflect on how the PAP-module influenced their thinking about interprofessional collaboration. This reflective essay is assessed by the facilitators. Meeting 3, plenary (2 hours, structured exchange of experiences). In this facilitated session, back at the educational institution, students from each group formulate how they intend to incorporate the lessons learned into their future practice. Commonalities and differences between the four stories are discussed, thereby broadening the learning experience. In line with the person-centered, collaborative approach that is central in the PAP-module, EBEs are asked to share their experiences regarding participation and potential lessons learned as well. Intended interprofessional learning outcomes. The Faculty working group Interprofessional Education (2016) established the Zuyd interprofessional competence model and interprofessional building blocks. It comprises five key competencies for IPE, which are implemented in all allied healthcare and nursing students’ training programs at Zuyd Hogeschool. The Patient as a Person Module intends to foster the following interprofessional competencies: (a) collaborate and understand (building blocks 1.3, – 1.6, 1.8 and 1.9), (b) deal with problems (building blocks 3.3 and 3.4), (c) make appropriate referrals (building block 4.1) and (d) evaluate (building blocks 5.1–5.6).

Table 1. Participants in PAP-module in the curriculum years 2018–2020.

Participant	No. of participants	Study program (for students)
Total number of Students	1313
University	368 (28%)	European public health, medicine and health sciences (all first year)
University of Applied Sciences	666 (51%)	Arts therapies, occupational therapy, nursing, physiotherapy, speech therapy (all third and fourth year)
Vocational education	279 (21%)	Home care provision (third and fourth year) †
EBEs	181 ‡
Facilitators	57 §

† Home care provision is a three-year study on the secondary vocational level. Graduates receive a professional registration, and their responsibilities include dressing up patients, washing them, and providing basic medication.

‡ 181 EBEs participated 381 times with a range of one to eight times per person.

§ 57 facilitators led 132 groups with a range of one to six times per person.

Figure 1. Overview of the organization and respective responsibilities in the Patient as a Person-module.

Table 2. Task division between a third-party and individual educational institutions based on the example of the PAP-Foundation.

Responsibilities of linking pin

Responsibility of individual educational institution

Creating a comprehensive timetable based on educational institutions’ scheduling constraints; Providing training to facilitators including authentic role play; Providing practical information to students; Recruiting and informing EBEs, welcoming them on educational institutions and directing them to the right classroom; Reimbursing travel expenses to EBEs; Updating the educational format and its formative examination procedure.

Submitting scheduling constraints to PAP-Foundation Ensuring facilitator availability, room booking and coffee for EBEs and students Optional: providing additional examination that aligns with study-specific learning needs

Faculty working group Interprofessional Education (2016). Interprofessional competence model and interprofessional building blocks. http://docplayer.nl/storage/41/22387139/1649346543/9ml3BUmc53PfaDJCHvs0Rg/22387139.pdf

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