Learnings and challenges to deploy an interprofessional and independent medical education programme to a new audience

Abstract

The importance of interprofessional education (IPE) in continuing medical education and professional development has long been recognised by health organisations and academic societies, benefiting not only patient outcomes and interprofessional relationships but also overall health systems and workforce shortage. We report on the outcomes of an Australian IPE activity on medication-overuse headache (MOH) with general practitioners (GPs) and community pharmacists as learners. The design of the activity, which followed the predisposing–enabling–reinforcing instructional framework by Green and Kreuter, aimed to: (1) improve knowledge and foster a willingness in GPs and pharmacists to work collaboratively to enhance the prevention, diagnosis and management of MOH; and (2) address their educational gap by demonstrating the utility of a blended learning IPE strategy on MOH. Integrated into the activity was an assessment of its effectiveness and impact to instil change in the participants’ knowledge of MOH, attitude and willingness to treat, and clinical practice behaviours of GPs and pharmacists to work together. The learners gained knowledge and confidence in diagnosing and managing MOH and in their ability to educate patients. The IPE approach suited the activity and was valued by the participating GPs and pharmacists, who seldom experience such learning formats. However, for educational providers in Australia, developing and deploying an independent medical education (IME) programme can be challenging. Providers of IMEs need to be aware of the potential pitfalls when competing with pharmaceutical-company-sponsored and delivered programmes.

Exploring the perspectives of health professionals in a rural district hospital in Achham, Nepal on the role of daily continuing medical education (CME)

“…Driel, et al highlighted the importance of interprofessional education in CME which has benefits for patients. 15 Curran et al (2010) described CME as professional support for rural physicians for their recruitment and retention. 16 CME is found to be supportive and encouraging for physicians working in remote and rural areas of Nepal.…”

Medication overuse headache: strategies for prevention and treatment using a multidisciplinary approach

“…Patients' lack of awareness of medication overuse as a cause of headaches, reluctance to acknowledge how much medication they take, and poor adherence to recommended treatment have been identified as barriers to detection and management of MOH. A survey of Australian general practitioners (GPs) 19 showed that GPs' awareness of MOH is low, although the awareness of codeine overuse in general may have increased following the TGA's decision, which was widely discussed in the media. In Singapore, a general practice survey of patients and their attending physicians in a primary care setting found that 22.6% of the patient population reported taking acute pain medication for headaches at least 4 days per week.…”