Interprofessional Education: A Clinical Practicum with Baccalaureate Nursing and Respiratory Students | Biomedgrid

Purpose: The purpose of this project is to evaluate a collaborative learning experience in the clinical practicum arena as a method to prepare healthcare students for interprofessional education and healthcare. Students were required to collaborate to execute care management of patients in an adult critical care setting with learning activities designed to illustrate the interrelationship between the care models of nursing and respiratory care disciplines. Interprofessional educational activities include pre-assessment, plan-of-care development, facilitation of post-conference discussion, and presentation during interprofessional rounds.Results: The initial pilot study included 16 students (2 respiratory,14 nursing) in the critical care clinical practicum. Students provided anecdotal feedback via clinical evaluation. Student perceptions revealed that the clinical experience facilitated student learning, critical thinking, and the relevance of a collaborative practice model.Conclusion: Recommendations from the pilot study included the examination of collaborative care models with a larger sample size and the use of quantitative measures to validate effectiveness of collaborative learning. Interprofessional education requires innovative teaching strategies to assist healthcare students in the comprehension of the importance of interprofessional healthcare and collaborative practice. Through this clinical practicum, healthcare students will develop the necessary skills to care for patients as a healthcare team