Learning from lives together: medical and social work students’ experiences of learning from people with disabilities in the community

Abstract

The study aims to evaluate an interprofessional community-based learning event, focussing on disability. The learning opportunity was based on the Leicester Model of Interprofessional Education, organised around the experiences and perceptions of service users and their carers. Programme participants were drawn from medicine and social work education in Leicester, UK, bringing together diverse traditions in the care of people with disabilities. Small student groups (3-4 students) worked from one of the eight community rehabilitation hospitals through a programme of contact with people with disabilities in hospital, at home or in other community settings. The evaluation, in March 2005, used a mixed methods approach, incorporating questionnaire surveys, focus group interviews with students and feedback from service users. Responses were collated and analysed using quantitative and qualitative measures. Fifty social work and 100 medical students completed the first combined delivery of the module. The findings indicated that the merging of social work and medical perspectives appear to create some tensions, although overall the student experience was found to be beneficial. Service users (16 responses) valued the process. They were not concerned at the prospect of meeting a number of students at home or elsewhere and were pleased to think of themselves as educators. Problems and obstacles still anticipated include changing the mindset of clinicians and practising social workers to enable them to support students from each other's disciplines in practice learning. The generally positive outcomes highlight that disability focussed joint learning offers a meaningful platform for interprofessional education in a practice environment.

Pre-registration interprofessional clinical education in the workplace: a realist review

“…Four educational formats were identified in the educational interventions described. One educational format involved student teams engaging with a real patient through interview as the basis for discussion, debate and reflection . Another format utilised prepared case‐based activities for discussion and reflection .…”

Disability in Cultural Competency Pharmacy Education

“…57 Mixed teams of social work and medical students completed 4-week rotations at community rehabilitation hospitals. Students learned from a range of persons with disabilities through conversations about their care and important issues in their lives.…”

The benefits of interprofessional education 10 years on

“…Their study showed attitudes of students had positively changed. The incorporation of problem based learning enhances the learning experience as it helps students to gain new skills and knowledge by working together (Anderson et al, 2010). The authors argued, therefore, that this approach to IPE has some limited benefits to a group of healthcare professionals, who often work closely but rarely have the opportunity to train together.…”

“…But clearly this major review, now in its third version, shows a disappointing development in any evidence base for IPE improving practice and stresses the need for research to demonstrate how IPE improves health care processes and patient outcomes. Anderson et al (2010) had developed an IPE module which consisted of student groups of 3-4 medical students and social work students working with people with disabilities in home, hospital and community settings. They evaluated both the student's responses and completed 10 interviews with services users/carers and 6 responses to postal questionnaires who reported that they had enjoyed working with the students and felt involved in the process and in the education of the students.…”