Professional Experience Placement

Interprofessional learning (IPL) is  gaining traction as a strategy to enhance learning and teaching of students by improving the quality of clinical placements to improve work readiness and assist with addressing workforce shortages. The development of models that facilitate cross-disciplinary education of students can benefit organisations by increasing their capacity to accommodate student placements and better prepare student understanding their role and function and become effective members of the healthcare team.

An article published recently discusses the findings of clinician’s views on interprofessional education (IPE) for students in the rural clinical setting. The authors report that although there were different views about what IPE entailed, most clinicians agreed that it was valuable for enhancing teamwork, improving knowledge about the role and functions of team members and facilitating common goals for patient care. It was noted though that currently opportunities for student engagement were limited, generally ad hoc and were opportunistic. The authors stated the barriers to IPE included planning and coordination of activities, resource availability and current regulatory and education provider requirements. Timing of student placements was also cause for concern. Systematic obstacles need to be minimised to enhance the opportunities of collaborative learning. Reorientation of planning, coordination and resourcing will facilitate the integration of IPE into professional experience placement of students.

Are there opportunities for IPE or IPL at your workplace?  Have you identified opportunities for students to work collaboratively? Post your comments below.