Impact of an Interprofessional Student-Led Concussion Clinic

Abstract

This article describes the impact on the learners and health care institution of the OnTRACK-Concussion program, an innovative student-led clinic at a children’s rehabilitation hospital. The clinic, developed and operated by occupational therapists, serves the community full-time year-round. Interprofessional health care learners work together to provide education and intervention for youth with concussion and their families and to support research and community outreach initiatives. To determine the program’s impact on student learning, a post-placement questionnaire was used to capture feedback about their clinical education experience. To determine the program impact more broadly, the most significant change method was used to analyze data from in-depth qualitative interviews with stakeholders across and beyond the organization. Three Program Impact Pathways were identified that support the program’s success within and beyond the organization: 1) Having a clear message/vision of integration; 2) Enabling learners to work directly with patients; and 3) Enabling learners to work autonomously. Debriefing with peers and clinical supervisors was identified as an important learning experience by interprofessional learners. This student-led clinic, developed and operationalized by occupational therapists, supports the integration of patient care, research, and clinical education in pediatric concussion through clearly identified Program Impact Pathways.

Keywords

• concussion
• occupational therapy
• clinical education
• paediatrics