Students Delivering Health Care to a Vulnerable Appalachian Population Through Interprofessional Service-Learning

Abstract

Interprofessional student service-learning experiences are integrated into the preventive care of older adult residents of public housing in Appalachia. Receiving a Health Resources and Services Administration grant provided the College of Nursing at East Tennessee State University the opportunity to expand interprofessional clinical experiences for students by partnering with the College of Pharmacy, the College of Clinical & Rehabilitative Health Sciences, and the local public housing authority. Select faculty from each college met and developed a plan to form student teams from all three colleges to conduct in-home comprehensive medical and nutrition assessments and medication chart reviews of high-risk older adults. Following the in-home visit, students and faculty discuss the assessment findings at planned interprofessional meetings. Students present their findings from each discipline's perspective and collaboratively set health priorities and develop intervention strategies and an inclusive follow-up plan. Excerpts from students' reflective narratives discussing the impact of the interprofessional service-learning experiences are shared.

Perceptions of Nursing in Appalachia: A State of the Science Paper

“…However, McClung (2008) found leadership roles in men who stepped out of the expected norms to become nurses. M. L. Lee et al (2013) found, even as students, nurses were leaders in interprofessional collaboration in a service-learning project aiding a vulnerable population of low-income, chronically ill elderly females. Leadership is also noted in Persily's (2004) exemplar of professional practice.…”

Perils and Pitfalls of OT Research in a Foreign Country: A Reflection

“…Investigators have identified logistical concerns (Lee, Hayes, McConnell, & Henry, 2013), the challenges of mixed methodology (Kahlke, 2014), unpredictability in qualitative data collection (Marshall & Edgley, 2015), and the need for flexibility and ongoing self-reflection (Ortlipp, 2008) as among the pitfalls that can occur.…”

Immunization Tour: Preparing for Mass Immunization through Pharmacy and Nursing Interprofessional Student-led Service-learning

“…9 Interprofessional service-learning student experiences have been described in the pharmacy and nursing literature. 10,11,12 Few pharmacy service-learning experiences are described as student-led. 13 Although several pharmacist-led and studentled immunizations experiences are reported, 14,15,16,17 none found have documented an interprofessional approach.…”