Physical therapy and pharmacy interprofessional education in the context of a university pro bono physical therapy setting

ABSTRACT

Interprofessional care is the standard for quality in healthcare. Interprofessional education (IPE) is an accreditation requirement in many health-care fields. This qualitative study evaluated the benefits of an interprofessional education program for Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) and Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students in the context of a pro bono physical therapy setting focused on reducing fall risk among older adults. For each pro bono participant, PharmD and DPT students worked together to analyze fall risk of the participating older adults. PharmD students completed a medication review while the DPT students completed balance assessments. Each profession recommended adjustments to care and presented their findings to peers, faculty, and participants. Following completion of the IPE program, students completed a voluntary evaluation with seven questions requiring semi-structured written reflection regarding their IPE experience. Student reflective responses from 2014–2016 were coded by IPE faculty using a coding guide collaboratively developed by the study team. Descriptive analysis included a summary of code frequency by year, discipline and Interprofessional Education Collaborative core competency: Values and Ethics, Communication, Teams and Teamwork, and Roles and Responsibilities. Values and Ethics were the most frequently coded core competency. Students consistently noted the importance of valuing the other profession, understanding each other’s roles, having good interprofessional communication, and working within a health-care team. Additional codes emerged during the analysis process. Written reflective findings suggest that hands-on collaboration, focused on a real-world problem (fall risk) relevant to both PharmD and DPT students, enabled interprofessional care that benefited students through real-world practice of skills learned during coursework, and benefited clinical participants through increased awareness of physical function and medication factors that could affect fall risk. Findings indicate that a pro bono physical therapy setting can provide hands-on learning that meets IPE accreditation requirements and student learning needs while addressing a public health concern.

KEYWORDS:

• Interprofessional education
• interprofessional collaboration
• qualitative methods
• pharmacy students
• physical therapy students
• IPEC core competencies

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the MCPHS University IPE Match Grant.

Notes on contributors

Ann L. Charrette

Ann L. Charrette PT, DPT, MS, PCS, NCS is Professor for the School of Physical Therapy, MCPHS University, Worcester campus. Dr. Charrette is a board certified Neurologic and a board certified Pediatric Physical Therapist. Dr. Charrette's scholarly work focuses on fitness opportunities for individuals with brain injury, interprofessional education and international service learning.

Karyn M. Sullivan

Karyn M. Sullivan PharmD, MPH is Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Director of Interprofessional Education for the School of Pharmacy, MCPHS University, Worcester campus. Dr. Sullivan's practice, teaching and scholarly works focus on the area of medication safety and interprofessional education

Janna Kucharski-Howard

Janna Kucharski-Howard PT, DPT, MSM is the Director of Clinical Education and Professor for the School of Physical Therapy, MCPHS University, Worcester campus. Dr. Kucharski-Howard has contemporary expertise in many areas of clinical practice and is responsible for the oversight, teaching and course coordination of the clinical education portion of the curriculum within the Doctor of Physical Therapy program. Dr. Kucharski-Howard's scholarly work focuses on topics of clinical education in physical therapy including integrated clinical education, professional behavior in physical therapy students, preparation of clinical instructors, student readiness, student mentoring, use of simulation within physical therapy education, and interprofessional education.

Sheila Seed

Sheila Seed harmD, MPH, CTH, RPh is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice for the School of Pharmacy, MCPHS University Worcester/ Manchester. Dr. Seed has expertise in many areas of clinical practice and is responsible for the oversight, teaching and course coordination of the curriculum within the Doctor of Pharmacy program. Dr. Seed's scholarly work focuses on topics of pharmacy practice, public health, travel health and interprofessional education

Laura Lorenz

Laura Lorenz PhD, MA, MEd is Faculty at Hawaii Manoa's Center on Disability Studies. She has a PhD in health policy/ health services research and a Master of Education in instructional design/ adult education. Her areas of expertise include qualitative methods, acquired brain injury, inclusion of patient perspectives into policy decision-making, and translation of research findings to policy, program interventions, and continuing professional education.