Preliminary analysis of an innovative curriculum in integrated primary care psychology: Assessment of student interest and competency

Objective: The American Psychological Association's (APA) Society for Health Psychology's Committee on Integrated Primary Care (IPC) developed, Integrated Primary Care Psychology: An Introductory Curriculum. The goal of the curriculum is to increase the knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to psychologists working withinIPC; as such, the study sought to assess the educational outcomes of this course. Specifically, the study intended to examine whether exposure to the curriculum would result in significant changes, and significant differences, in students' interest levels and attitudes, as well as, actual and perceived competency levels in IPC. Overall, we aimed to discern whether those who completed the course (1) attained competency in skills necessary to work as a psychologist in integrated primary care, (2) to determine if the course resulted in heightened interest in the field of Integrated Primary Care Psychology, (3) to provide preliminary feedback to the committee regarding potential modifications or enhancements to the course and data collection instruments, and to (4) justify whether the course should be a standard component of a clinical psychology graduate program curriculum. Methods: Participants included doctoral students. The experimental group consisted of students enrolled in the Introduction to IPC course (n=14). These individuals were fourth-year, third-year, and second-year cohort students. The control group (n=18) was comprised of students of similar training within the same program, who were not enrolled in the course. Results: Analyses were run assessing subjective student interest and competency, as well as, group performance on objective module quizzes. Exposure to the curriculum yielded increased student interest levels and increased subjective and objective competency attainment. Further analyses revealed students enrolled in the course reported significant increases in overall interest rates after course completion compared to controls.