Publication Date

2020

Abstract

Interprofessional education is an increasingly common component of course work for health care professionals. Extant research provides examples of these collaborations across multiple health disciplines, however, there is no research that addresses interprofessional education between the fields of occupational therapy and dietetics. This study was conducted in order to fill the gap of extant research related to unique collaborations between occupational therapy and dietetics. The Interprofessional Attitudes Scale was given to occupational therapy and dietetic students pre/post participation in an interprofessional, active learning, educational case-study. There was one item on the scale that demonstrated a statistically significant change (“shared learning before graduation will help me become a better team worker”), while all other items showed only a slight positive increase. While this study suggests that students value interprofessional education, there is further research needed to determine what types of interprofessional education are most impactful for students at various levels of education.

Author Biography

Casey Humphrey is an assistant professor in the Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy Department at Eastern Kentucky University. Casey is a licensed occupational therapist with clinical experience in brain injury rehabilitation, driving rehabilitation, healthcare administration, and geriatrics. She is a certified brain injury specialist and a certified driving rehabilitation specialist.

Karina Christopher is an assistant professor in the Department of Applied Human Sciences at Eastern Kentucky University. Dr. Christopher is a registered dietitian and teaches medical nutrition therapy, basic nutrition, and aging courses. She has clinical dietetic experience working with oncology, cardiac, diabetes, and nutrition support.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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Interprofessional Education: A Team Approach in the Classroom

Interprofessional education is an increasingly common component of course work for health care professionals. Extant research provides examples of these collaborations across multiple health disciplines, however, there is no research that addresses interprofessional education between the fields of occupational therapy and dietetics. This study was conducted in order to fill the gap of extant research related to unique collaborations between occupational therapy and dietetics. The Interprofessional Attitudes Scale was given to occupational therapy and dietetic students pre/post participation in an interprofessional, active learning, educational case-study. There was one item on the scale that demonstrated a statistically significant change (“shared learning before graduation will help me become a better team worker”), while all other items showed only a slight positive increase. While this study suggests that students value interprofessional education, there is further research needed to determine what types of interprofessional education are most impactful for students at various levels of education.