Currently Available Tools and Teaching Strategies for the Interprofessional Education of Students in Health Professions : Literature review

Abstract

Interprofessional education (IPE) is designed to provide students from different health sectors with opportunities to work together to enhance future collaboration. The implementation of IPE activities is a current trend in various countries. This review exclusively targets IPE issues involving undergraduate health profession students and highlights various approaches in different regions. A total of 28 articles published in peer-reviewed journals between January 2012 and July 2015 were assessed to determine recent trends in IPE implementation. Nine main strategies were identified: simulation-based education programmes; rotations in rural and community settings; interprofessional training wards; patient-centred case studies; theme-centred workshops; student seminars; student-delivered lectures; health promotion activities; and interactive lectures in a common setting. Many of these institutions had not restricted themselves to a single strategy and supplemented these activities with additional teaching or learning methods. Recommendations gathered from these diverse approaches may assist the development of sustainable strategies for implementing IPE in undergraduate medical curricula.

Keywords

• interprofessional relations
• interdisciplinary communication
• undergraduate medical education
• health professions.