WHIRL Study: Workplace Health Interprofessional Learning in the Construction Industry

Abstract

Interprofessional learning (IPL) is essential to prepare healthcare trainees as the future public health workforce. WHIRL (Workplace Health InteRprofessional Learning) was an innovative IPL intervention that engaged volunteer healthcare trainees (n = 20) in multi-professional teams to deliver health checks (n = 464), including tailored advice and signposting, to employees in the UK construction industry (across 21 events, 16 sites, 10 organisations) as part of an ongoing research programme called Test@Work. Volunteers undertook a four-part training and support package of trainer-led education, observations of practice, self-directed learning and clinical supervision, together with peer mentoring. In a one-group post-test only design, IPL outcomes were measured using the Inventory of Reflective Vignette-Interprofessional Learning (IRV-IPL), and the psychometric properties of the IRV-IPL tool were tested. WHIRL demonstrably improved healthcare trainees’ interprofessional skills in all five areas of collaboration, coordination, cooperation, communication, and commendation. The IRV-IPL tool was found to be a valid and reliable measure of interprofessional competencies across three scenarios; before and after health promotion activities, and as a predictor of future health promotion competence. This industry-based workplace IPL programme resulted in the attainment of health check competencies and bridged the gap between research, education and clinical practice.

Peer-mentoring na educação em saúde: quais as suas aplicações, limitações e estratégias para o sucesso?

“…Outros cenários foram apresentados pelos estudos elencados nesta revisão, como treinamento de profissionais atuantes em centros especializados no tratamento de cânceres (Phipps et al, 2018), especialidade médica em ultrassonografia (Smith et al, 2018), pós-graduação e pesquisa biomédica (Lewis, Martina, McDermott, Chaudron, et al, 2017), residência médica em Medicina de Família e Comunidade (Prunuske et al, 2019), serviços de saúde com atendimento de clínica médica e medicina do trabalho (Blake et al, 2020) e, por fim, em programas de assistência à saúde e imunização (Hossain et al, 2021).…”

“…A aprendizagem interprofissional tem um papel inovador em ambientes de trabalho, uma vez que proporciona uma troca de diferentes experiências profissionais (Blake et al, 2020). Os mesmos autores observaram o crescimento acadêmico e profissional de estudantes da área da saúde, ao vivenciarem as nuances do "mundo real" em um serviço de promoção à saúde.…”

Accessing Voluntary HIV Testing in the Construction Industry: A Qualitative Analysis of Employee Interviews from the Test@Work Study

“…The intervention was an optional one-off individual health check with tailored health advice and signposting, offered to the construction workforce in health check events delivered as part of the Test@Work program [ 32 ]. The events were undertaken at 10 participating organizations across 16 construction sites.…”

“…Participants were provided with personal individualized feedback on their health check results; they received tailored health advice and signposting and were provided with a take-away health resource pack. The rationale, content, and delivery of the health checks and health advice is described in detail elsewhere, together with further details about the delivery team and their training [ 32 ]. Line managers at the participating organizations were provided with an evidence-based digital toolkit about the rationale for workplace health promotion and health screening, with details about the processes for HIV testing [ 33 ] to support the promotion of the event to their staff.…”

Test@Work Texts: Mobile Phone Messaging to Increase Awareness of HIV and HIV Testing in UK Construction Employees during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Recruitment to the study took place at one of 21 workplace health check events between August 2019 to February 2020 at the participating organisations. The health check events were delivered as part of a wider research programme called Test@Work; further details on site recruitment, health checks and study findings are therefore reported elsewhere [ 53 ]. Here, the events were simply used as a platform to access employees in the construction industry and recruit employees into ‘Test@Work Texts’ (a follow-on workplace text messaging study conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic).…”