Educating for collaborative practice: an interpretation of current achievements and thoughts for future directions

Abstract

CONTEXT The Edinburgh Declaration, developed in 1998 as a pledge to alter the character of medical education to more effectively meet the needs of society, included a recommendation to increase the opportunity for joint learning between health and health-related professions, as part of the training for teamwork. This article acknowledges achievements since the Declaration in relation to this recommendation, using an umbrella term for the phenomenon, 'educating for collaborative practice', and presents a perspective framed as a series of questions to encourage reflection on future directions.METHODS A literature interpretation, informed by philosophical hermeneutics, was conducted using text sets comprising reports and reviews from a section of the international literature since 1988. The interpretation involved: engaging with meanings as presented in the chosen texts; making iterative returns to the texts to explore emerging understanding; and ensuring parts of our understanding from particular texts were fused with complete understanding of the texts as a whole.A lens of appreciative inquiry facilitated acknowledgement of what has been achieved, while being curious about how it could be.RESULTS Interpretation of the selected literature revealed notable achievements. Areas for further consideration were identified in relation to three themes: establishing shared understanding AND purpose behind use of terminology; being a conduit AND sharing responsibility for change; exploring ways of doing things AND ensuring ongoing inclusivity.CONCLUSIONS Interpreting the current literature on 'educating for collaborative practice' has generated questions for reflection on how it may be otherwise. Readers are encouraged to embrace the tensions inherent in unanswered questions, providing space for communication, initiative and diversity of thought. An ongoing dialogue with the literature is proposed, asking whether educating students for a collective identity in settings where they are learning for and with patients is likely to advance educating for patient-centred collaborative practice.

Service learning in pharmacy: implementation of tuberculosis screening by second-year pharmacy students in primary health care facilities in Cape Town, South Africa

“…The second objective of the service-learning programme required students to interact with nurses as the interprofessional experience would enable them to appreciate the nurse-driven PHC system in South Africa (Coovadia et al, 2009). Over two-thirds (69.7%) of the students found it was easy to communicate with the nursing staff, which aligns with literature that suggested an easy flow of communication between pharmacists/ pharmacy students and nurses promotes a synergistic relationship between all those who contribute to a patient's well-being (Hudson & Croker, 2018). This study adds to the dearth of evidence reporting on nurses' supervision of pharmacy students in an experiential learning environment.…”

Effect of interprofessional education on teamwork and on knowledge of chronic conditions management

“…Finally, if on the one hand short IPE interventions showed to be effective to improve knowledge about the management of CNCDs, on the other hand they did not contribute to improve the teamwork climate. This result refers to a reflection on the characteristics of teamwork climate, which receives contributions from social interactions, relationships between professionals from different areas, and influence of organizational culture ( 24 ) , complex aspects that are less sensitive to a short intervention restricted to the scope of the teams.…”

“…The tensions that exist in practice do not necessarily need to be “solved,” but they need to be confronted in order to allow the advance of the movement in favor of collaborative practice. Accordingly, the very complexity of interprofessional work and its tensions help to understand the possible reasons for the lack of impact on team climate of a short IPE intervention in an isolated way ( 24 ) .…”

Interdisciplinary expertise in medical practice: Challenges of using and producing knowledge in complex problem-solving

“…Once students understand how to work interprofessionally, they are ready to enter the workplace as a member of the collaborative practice team. IPE, therefore, is also called educating for collaborative practice (Hudson & Croker 2018).…”