Investigations of outcomes of interprofessional education as a component of the basic preparation of health and human service professionals have lacked a strong focus on student perceptions, the student voice. This qualitative study examined students' insights regarding the interprofessional component of an elective course offered to 23 students; five from medicine and six from each of pharmaceutical sciences, nursing and social work. Fourteen students participated in focus group interviews at the conclusion of the course and 12 participated in telephone interviews six months later. The interviews explored perceptions regarding learning, including insights about the effectiveness of teaching-learning strategies, and improvements required. Experiential components of the course were more meaningful to students than theoretical components. Students perceived the use of practice-based learning, student interprofessional teams, and interprofessional collaboration in the classroom as particularly effective. The course contributed to students' development of their own professional voices and their understanding of those of other professions. Additional interpretive studies of students' experiences and those of faculty and professionals in practice are needed, particularly regarding strategies for increasing the effectiveness of experiential learning.

When the mouth yields pain and distress, it can impact psychosocially the lives of older adults and might constitute a sensitive topic for open disclosure. In this article, we describe our use of a written vignette in focus groups for discussion of oral health and disablement. Six focus groups were conducted with 42 older men and women with an average age of 75 years who were purposefully selected through advertisements posted in community centers and retirement homes. In discussions lasting for an average of 90 min, groups of up to 9 participants commented positively and negatively on the vignette's story and voluntarily discussed their personal experiences, family histories, and testimonies about the mouth and coping and adapting strategies to disabilities. The discussion about oral health can be sensitive, but the vignette shifted the focus away from the participants and allowed them to share personal experiences with oral health and disablement.

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