Complexity and interprofessional education

Abstract

Calls for greater collaboration between professionals in health and social care have led to pressures to move towards interprofessional education at both pre‐ and postregistration levels. Whilst this move has evolved out of ‘common sense’ demands, such a multiple systems approach to education does not fit easily into existing traditional disciplinary frameworks and there is, as yet, no proven theoretical framework to guide its development. What is more, it lacks a clear causality and predictability and therefore does not fit easily into traditional scientific frameworks with their focus on analysis, prediction and control. This article considers how complexity theory, with its focus on connectivity, diversity, self‐organization, and emergence, can provide interprofessional education with a coherent theoretical foundation, freeing it from the constraints of a traditional linear framework, enabling it to be better understood, questioned and challenged as a new paradigm of learning.

La collaboration interprofessionnelle : mode passagère ou voie de l'avenir?

“…Durant de nombreuses années, la façon scientifique reposait sur un modèle réducteur de cause à effets. À la fin du 20 e siècle, les chercheurs ont reconnu que cette façon linéaire de voir le monde avait ses limites au moment d'expliquer des systèmes vivants complexes tels que le cerveau, ou des phénomènes complexes comme l'interaction entre les personnes et les groupes dans une collectivité ou dans les soins de santé 17,18 . Ces systèmes sont complexes parce qu'ils sont faits d'éléments multiples et interconnectés.…”

“…Nous pouvons apprendre de la théorie de la complexité que la tension et l'incertitude sont normales dans les systèmes complexes; nous devrions les anticiper. Les sciences de la complexité offrent une structure pour la compréhension du fait qu'un degré d'incertitude et d'imprévisibilité fait partie de n'importe quel système 17 .…”

Current Education/Training Available for Professionals Working in Mental Health Services in the Republic of Ireland: A Scoping Study

“…Baldwin and Baldwin (2007:32) suggest that attempts to promote interdisciplinary education are often met with 'systems inertia' and 'disciplinary territoriality'. Others highlight the confusion and lack of understanding around interdisciplinary concepts (Baldwin and Baldwin 2007;Lorente et al2006), finding time within overburdened curricula, timetabling difficulties, disciplinespecific requirements for registration (Cooper et al 2004;Cooper et al 2001;Singleton and Green-Hernandez 1998), lack of interdisciplinary role models in education and practice (Baldwin and Baldwin 2007), lack of adequate preparation of academic and clinical lecturers (Anderson et al 2009), and ensuring joint validation from differing professional regulatory bodies (Glen and Reeves 2004). In times of scarce financial resources, the increase in the number of staff required to facilitate group learning is also seen as a barrier (Rush and Baker 2006).…”

Coming in from the interprofessional cold in Australia

“…17 It does, however, point to limitations when used alone to deal with complex interactions within and across dynamic social systems. 18 Box 3 illustrates some of the main levels, stakeholders and sectors involved in this interplay of complex systems.…”