How we implemented Continuous Interprofessional Education at a newly established public hospital in Singapore

Abstract

Introduction To promote interprofessional collaboration (IPC), our newly established hospital implemented the Continuing Interprofessional Education (CIPE) initiatives, which included a half-day workshop and 15 sessions of Grand Rounds, with the content focusing on establishing interprofessional patient-centered care pathways, policies, and ultimately to build a community of IPC. Methods To evaluate the impact of the CIPE initiatives, 120 staff who attended at least 50% of the CIPE sessions were invited to complete the Interprofessional Attitudes Scale (IPAS). Results 67.5% of the invited participants completed the survey. The majority of the participants answered “agree” or “strongly agree” for the domains of Teamwork/Roles/Responsibilities, Patient-centeredness, Diversity and Ethics, and Community Centeredness after going through the CIPE initiatives. The Interprofessional Bias domain revealed mixed responses. Discussions and Implications of practice The significant contributing factors towards the success of the CIPE Grand Rounds included: (1) the topics were proposed by our staff and centered on clinical practice; (2) the delivery format was interactive, guided by adult learning principles. The mixed responses regarding the presence of biases among the participants suggested that interprofessional biases are deep-rooted in the healthcare setting, and attendance of these CIPE Grand Rounds made participants more acutely aware of these biases. However, more actions are needed to eradicate these biases.