Evaluation of student perceptions with 2 interprofessional assessment tools—the Collaborative Healthcare Interdisciplinary Relationship Planning instrument and the Interprofessional Attitudes Scale—following didactic and clinical learning experiences in the United States

Abstract

Purpose This study investigated changes in students’ attitudes using 2 validated interprofessional survey instruments—the Collaborative Healthcare Interdisciplinary Relationship Planning (CHIRP) instrument and the Interprofessional Attitudes Scale (IPAS)—before and after didactic and clinical cohorts. Methods Students from 7 colleges/schools participated in didactic and clinical cohorts during the 2017–2018 year. Didactic cohorts experienced 2 interactive sessions 6 months apart, while clinical cohorts experienced 4 outpatient clinical sessions once monthly. For the baseline and post-cohort assessments, 865 students were randomly assigned to complete either the 14-item CHIRP or the 27-item IPAS. The Pittman test using permutations of linear ranks was used to determine differences in the score distribution between the baseline and post-cohort assessments. Pooled results were compared for the CHIRP total score and the IPAS total and subdomain scores. For each score, 3 comparisons were made simultaneously: overall baseline versus post-didactic cohort, overall baseline versus post-clinical cohort, and post-didactic cohort versus post-clinical cohort. Alpha was adjusted to 0.0167 to account for simultaneous comparisons. Results The baseline and post-cohort survey response rates were 62.4% and 65.9% for CHIRP and 58.7% and 58.1% for IPAS, respectively. The post-clinical cohort scores for the IPAS subdomain of teamwork, roles, and responsibilities were significantly higher than the baseline and post-didactic cohort scores. No differences were seen for the remaining IPAS subdomain scores or the CHIRP instrument total score. Conclusion The IPAS instrument may discern changes in student attitudes in the subdomain of teamwork, roles, and responsibilities following short-term clinical experiences involving diverse interprofessional team members.

Keywords

• academic medical centers
• ambulatory care
• attitude of health personnel
• health education
• interprofessional relations
• united states