Developing interprofessional communication skills for pharmacists to improve their ability to collaborate with other professions

Successful communication between health professionals is a prerequisite for collaborative practice. Clinical pharmacists completed a learning and practice module introducing them to a framework for successful interprofessional communication (IPC) in the course of their postgraduate studies. A face-to-face discussion of a contemporary clinical topic with a health professional was then scheduled, mainly with junior doctors, in their practice setting. An exploratory case study methodology was employed to investigate pharmacists’ written reflections on their experience applying their newly acquired IPC skills. Thematic analysis of reflections developed five categories relating to interprofessional collaboration, learning, and education. Themes describing pharmacists’ preconceptions about the health professional and scheduled interprofessional encounter, how it allowed them to learn about doctors’ and other health professionals’ practice and build collaborative relationships were identified. Reflections also elaborated that applying the communication framework and strengthening of collaboration created opportunities for IPE, with added observations about these increasing potential impact on patient care and change of practice. Analysis of anonymous feedback provided by the health professionals yielded similar themes and was integrated for triangulation. Applying successful IPC skills in healthcare settings may increase interprofessional collaboration and create practice models which facilitate interprofessional learning in health profession programmes.     

Interprofessional simulation training for community mental health teams: Findings from a mixed methods study

ABSTRACT

Community mental health teams (CMHTs) in England face mounting service pressures due to an increased focus on out-of-hospital care. Interprofessional working is essential to providing good mental healthcare in community settings. Simulation training is underused in mental health, despite strong support for its improvement of clinical skills, confidence, teamwork, and interprofessional collaboration in other healthcare settings. This study aims to evaluate the impact of simulation training on community mental health professionals. An interprofessional simulation training course on assessment and team working skills for community mental health professionals was developed and delivered at a time of service reorganisation in South London services, including changes to job roles and responsibilities. In total, 57 course participants completed a survey that measured perceptions of knowledge and confidence, as well as a general view of the course. Eight participants took part in further semi-structured interviews 2–3 months after the course to provide perceptions about this experience’s subsequent impact. There were statistically significant increases in knowledge and confidence scores with large effect sizes. Thematic analyses of open-text survey and interview data identified emergent themes of interprofessional understanding; attitudes in clinical practice; staff well-being; the value of reflection; opportunity for feedback; and fidelity to clinical practice. Simulation training can improve confidence and knowledge in core skills and team working for CMHTs. Participants reported benefits to key areas of community mental healthcare, such as interprofessional collaboration, reflective practice, and staff well-being. Findings represented individual and team learning, as well as subsequent changes to clinical practice, and were related back to the interactive and reflective nature of the simulation. Implications are highlighted concerning the use of interprofessional simulation training in mental health, particularly relating to staff well-being, attitudes, and interprofessional working.     

Evaluation of a shared approach to interprofessional learning about stroke self-management

This article describes an evaluation of interprofessional training in a stroke self-management program (SSMP) for health and social care professionals. Sixty-six practitioners from 8 teams and 11 professions received training. The aim was to evaluate the impact of the interprofessional training on participants' beliefs and attitudes to self-management and collaboration and knowledge sharing throughout the stroke pathway. Methods included contextual mapping of the stroke pathway, before and after questionnaires, analysis of practitioners' case reflections on their use of the SSMP and semi-structured interviews. Overall, practitioners' attitudes and beliefs about self-management had changed post-training, and the majority felt the program could be used successfully throughout the stroke pathway. Practitioners felt that the interprofessional training had led to a more consistent approach to supporting self-management and had improved communication between teams about patients/goals. The project provided the opportunity for interprofessional teams to explore beliefs and attitudes to changes in practice together.     

Enhancing interprofessional education and practice: Development and implementation of a new graduate-level course using the international classification of functioning,disability, and health

Since the introduction of the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), there is increasing awareness among health professionals to consider a biopsychosocial approach to patients’ health and functioning. Although diffusion of the ICF as a concept is widely recognized, application of the ICF within health education and practice requires attention, training, and support. This article describes the development and implementation of a new graduate-level course using the ICF to assist health professionals and graduate trainees in rehabilitation. The innovation behind this course is its focus on application of the ICF in research and practice through a combination of peer support and instructor mentorship. The value of the ICF for interprofessional education, research, and practice includes promotion of a broad perspective to health, application of theory in practice, and enhanced communication and collaboration in healthcare.     

Essential features influencing collaboration in team-based non-specific back pain rehabilitation: Findings from a mixed methods study

The aim of the study presented in this article was to explore how professionals, without guidelines for implementing interprofessional teamwork, experience the collaboration within team-based rehabilitation for people with back pain and how this collaboration influences their clinical practice. This study employed a mixed methods design. A questionnaire was answered by 383 participants and 17 participants were interviewed. The interviews were analysed using content analysis. The quantitative results showed that the participants were satisfied with their team-based collaboration. Thirty percent reported that staff changes in the past year had influenced their clinical practice, of which 57% reported that these changes had had negative consequences. The qualitative findings revealed that essential features for an effective collaboration were shared basic values and supporting each other. Furthermore, aspects such as having enough time for reflection, staff continuity, and a shared view of the team members’ roles were identified as aspects which influenced the clinical practice. Important clinical implications for nurturing and developing a collaboration in team-based rehabilitation are to create shared basic values and a unified view of all team members’ roles and their contributions to the team. These aspects need to be emphasised on an ongoing basis and not only when the team is formed.     

Interprofessional patient-centred practice in oncology teams: utopia or reality?

Abstract

Studies on interprofessional practice usually report professionals’ viewpoints and document organizational, procedural and relational factors influencing that practice. Considering the importance of interprofessional patient-centred (IPPC) practice, it seems necessary to describe it in detail in an actual context of care, from the perspective of patients, their families and health-care professionals. The goal of this study was to describe IPPC practice throughout the continuum of cancer care. A qualitative multiple case study was completed with two interprofessional teams from a Canadian teaching hospital. Interviews were conducted with patients, their families and professionals, and observation was carried out. Three themes were illustrated by current team practice: welcoming the person as a unique individual, but still requiring the patient to comply; the paradoxical coexistence of patient-centred discourse and professional-centred practice; and triggering team collaboration with the culmination of the patient’s situation. Several influential factors were described, including the way the team works; the physical environment; professionals’ and patients’/family members’ stance on the collaboration; professionals’ stance on patients and their families; and patients’ stance on professionals. Finally, themes describing the desired IPPC practice reflect the wish of most participants to be more involved. They were: providing support in line with the patient’s experience and involvement; respecting patients by not imposing professionals’ values and goals; and consistency and regularity in the collaboration of all members.     

Physiotherapy new graduate self-efficacy and readiness for interprofessional collaboration: a mixed methods study

ABSTRACT

Effective interprofessional collaboration is a required competency for all health professionals including physiotherapists. Little is known about new graduate physiotherapists’ self-efficacy and readiness for interprofessional collaboration. A sequential mixed-methods design was used to examine and explore (a) new graduate self-efficacy and (b) new graduate perception of the role and influence of curricular activities on their readiness for interprofessional collaboration. New graduate physiotherapists completed a self-efficacy measure based on the Interprofessional Care Core Competencies Global Rating Scales, and semi-structured interviews were undertaken and subjected to framework analysis. 150 surveys were completed (response rate 91%). Less than one quarter of all participants agreed or strongly agreed that they were confident in relation to all interprofessional competencies. New graduates attributed their self-efficacy to being directly exposed to interprofessional collaboration in a clinical setting during their placement year. The results demonstrate that new graduate physiotherapists have high self-efficacy communicating with other professionals and understanding their roles, however they have low self-efficacy with interprofessional conflict resolution and providing feedback to others. This study has implications for supporting new graduates in practice, and for preparing physiotherapy students for interprofessional collaboration.     

A multi-method evaluation of interprofessional education for healthcare professionals caring for women during and after pregnancy

This multi-method evaluation assessed the perceived impact of interprofessional workshops targeting enhanced collaboration between healthcare professionals who care for women during and after pregnancy. Current policy recommends partnership working to improve care for women and babies, however, there is little interprofessional education in this area. Five one-day workshops were delivered to 18 healthcare professionals (47.4% of the 38 healthcare professionals registered). The workshop was evaluated through questionnaires before and after the workshop measuring attitudes and willingness towards collaboration; observations of the workshops by a researcher and follow-up interviews 2 months’ post-workshop to explore changes in practice. Workshops were attended by midwives, health visitors (trained nurses specialising in community care for children 0–5 years), dietitians, nurses, a general practitioner and a breastfeeding specialist. Attitudes and willingness to participate in interprofessional collaborative practice improved after the workshop. Observations made at the workshop included engaged participants who reported numerous barriers towards collaboration. Follow-up contact with 12 participants identified several examples of collaboration in practice resulting from workshop attendance. These findings suggest that the workshops influenced attendees to change their practice towards more collaborative working. Future work needs to confirm these results with more participants.     

Interprofessional collaboration: An exploration of possible prerequisites for successful implementation

Poor collaboration among professional groups may be a major cause of incoherent patient pathways in hospital settings. For over a decade, interprofessional collaboration (IPC) have been stressed as an effective method to enhance the delivery of patient care. This article presents a theory-based stakeholder evaluation of the implementation of an intervention aiming to implement the concept of IPC in a Danish regional hospital from 2012 to 2015. Involving five departments and eight professions, the intervention aimed at developing coherent practices across health professions by optimising patient pathways with the establishment of interprofessional teams as a core element. The evaluation assessed the professionals’ views of the intervention. Data were collected through focus group interviews and document analysis. We found that a strengthened focus on patient pathways, well-trained instructors, and an evidence-based strategy for implementation facilitates the success of interventions with a focus on IPC in hospital settings. We furthermore found that cultural and organisational factors are barriers to the implementation of IPC practices, that interruptions of uni-professional work may hamper coordination across professions, and that the interprofessional teams may form new isolated organisational structures.     

The global emergence of IPE and collaborative care

Abstract

As the United States faces an impending shortage in the primary care workforce, interprofessional teamwork training to improve clinic efficiency and health outcomes is becoming increasingly important. Currently there is limited integration of interprofessional training in educational models for health professionals. The implementation of Patient Aligned Care Teams at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has provided an opportunity for interprofessional collaboration among trainee and faculty providers within the VA system. However, integration of interprofessional education is also necessary to train future providers in order to provide effective team-based care. We describe a transportable educational model for health professional collaboration from our experience as a VA Center of Excellence in Primary Care Education, including a complementary novel one-year post-Master’s adult nurse practitioner interprofessional clinical fellowship. With growing recognition that interprofessional care can improve efficiency and outcomes, there is an increasing need for programs that train future providers in collaboration and team-based care.     

“Refreshed…reinforced…reflective”: A qualitative exploration of interprofessional education facilitators’ own interprofessional learning and collaborative practice

While there is extensive research examining the outcomes of interprofessional education (IPE) for students, minimal research has investigated how facilitating student learning influences the facilitators themselves. This exploratory case study aimed to explore whether and how facilitating IPE influences facilitators’ own collaborative practice attitudes, knowledge, and workplace behaviours. Sixteen facilitators of an online pre-licensure IPE unit for an Australian university participated in semi-structured telephone interviews. Inductive thematic analysis revealed three emergent themes and associated subthemes characterising participants’ reflexivity as IPE facilitators: interprofessional learning; professional behaviour change; and collaborative practice expertise. Participants experienced interprofessional learning in their role as facilitators, improving their understanding of other professionals’ roles, theoretical and empirical knowledge underlying collaborative practice, and the use and value of online communication. Participants also reported having changed several professional behaviours, including improved interprofessional collaboration with colleagues, a change in care plan focus, a less didactic approach to supervising students and staff, and greater enthusiasm impressing the value of collaborative practice on placement students. Participants reported having acquired their prior interprofessional collaboration expertise via professional experience rather than formal learning opportunities and believed access to formal IPE as learners would aid their continuing professional development. Overall, the outcomes of the IPE experience extended past the intended audience of the student learners and positively impacted on the facilitators as well.     

Translation and cultural adaptation of the Japanese version of the interprofessional facilitation scale

Effective interaction in interprofessional collaboration requires skills in interprofessional facilitation. The need for interprofessional learning and practice in Japan is highlighted by Japan’s status as one of the most rapidly aging societies because good care for elderly people with complex needs requires effective collaboration between different professional groups. The development of interprofessional facilitation skills (including management of the additional complexities) among learners or professionals enhances interprofessional learning and consensus building and empowers them to make appropriate commitments when faced with difficult challenges. The 18-item interprofessional facilitation scale (IPFS) can be used to enhance interprofessional facilitation skills. Here, we aimed to develop a Japanese adapted version of the IPFS and to validate it for use with Japanese healthcare professionals. Consistent with guidelines for cross-cultural adaptation, three translators translated the original IPFS from English into Japanese, and an expert and all authors confirmed its face and content validity. The translated items were amended during backtranslation and expert reviews. Exploratory factor analysis was performed with 167 healthcare professionals to explore the underlying structure of the items. This analysis revealed two factors with good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha > 0.8), which were labelled as: (1) encouraging interprofessional interaction and (2) respect for each professional. The original factor ‘Encouraging interprofessional interaction’ was divided into two factors in the study. One reason for this division might be related to the behaviour of Japanese health professionals, that is, most Japanese might understand that ‘facilitation’ encourages relationships as contextual belonging that are distinct from relationships based on respect for others. This mindset is likely based on the notion of ‘relationalism’, which is fundamental in Japanese culture. Further investigation of this Japanese version of the IPFS will strengthen factor construction and improve scrutiny of the relationships between factors.     

Student engagement in interprofessional working in practice placement settings

Aim. To investigate the nature of student engagement in interprofessional interaction while on placement. Background. Due to continuing emphasis on improving interprofessional collaboration, UK educational establishments are required to offer prequalifying health and social care students interprofessional education in order that they acquire relevant competencies. However, few formal interprofessional education initiatives occur in practice settings and little is known about prequalifying students’ non‐formal learning about interprofessional issues while on placement. Design. From 2003–2005 an English Faculty of Health and Social Care conducted a qualitative study to explore opportunities for interprofessional learning and working available to students in practice placement settings. Methods. Case studies were conducted in a coronary care ward, a medical ward for older patients, a maternity unit, a paediatric unit, an integrated community learning disabilities team and a residential facility for adults with challenging behaviour. Gaining access was complex, due to variable student timetables and UK research governance requirements. Sites were therefore selected according to geographical area and timing of student placements. Details of interprofessional interaction (formal and informal) were observed and recorded. Interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 20 practitioners and 15 students. Data were analysed thematically. Results. Student experience varied considerably. Contributing factors included the influence of doctors and differing professional cultures; mentors’ support for student engagement in interprofessional working; and individual students’ confidence levels. Most sites were managed by nurses and some senior nurses were proactive in involving students interprofessionally. However, many students lacked systematic support for interprofessional engagement. Conclusions. Students lack parity of experience concerning interprofessional activity on placement. Where they do not have systematic support, their engagement depends mainly on their own confidence. Relevance to clinical practice. Senior nurses are ideally placed to promote environments where students can develop interprofessional competencies through systematic interprofessional engagement.     

Nursing emotion work and interprofessional collaboration in general internal medicine wards: a qualitative study

Title. Nursing emotion work and interprofessional collaboration in general internal medicine wards: a qualitative study Aim. This paper is a report of a study to examine nursing emotion work and interprofessional collaboration in order to understand and improve collaborative nursing practice. Background. Nursing standards identify collaborative practice as necessary for quality patient care yet many nurses are often reluctant to participate in interprofessional teams. Strategies intended to improve participation often fail which suggests that the factors underpinning nurses’ disinclination towards interprofessional collaboration have yet to be understood. The concept of emotion work has not been applied to nursing interprofessionalism, and holds the potential to improve collaborative practice. Nursing emotion work is defined as the management of the emotions of self and others in order to improve patient care. Methods. Qualitative data were collected in 2006 using non‐participant observation, shadowing and semi‐structured interviews with nursing, medical and allied professionals in the general internal medicine wards of three hospitals in urban Canada. Findings. Nurses’ collaborations with other professionals are influenced by emotion work considerations. The establishment and maintenance of a nursing esprit de corps, corridor conflicts with physicians, and the failure of the interdisciplinary team to acknowledge the importance of nursing’s core caring values are important factors underpinning nurses’ interprofessional disengagement. Conclusion. Longstanding emotion work issues must be addressed before nurses will engage collaboratively. We suggest improving nursing collaboration through the refining of holistic nursing information, and reflections on practice by all interprofessional team members.     

Examining the implementation of collaborative competencies in a critical care setting: Key challenges for enacting competency-based education

Interprofessional collaboration is recognised as an important factor in improving patient care in intensive care units (ICUs). Competency frameworks, and more specifically interprofessional competency frameworks, are a key strategy being used to support the development of attitudes, knowledge, skills, and behaviours needed for an interprofessional approach to care. However, evidence for the application of competencies is limited. This study aimed to extend our empirically based understanding of the significance of interprofessional competencies to actual clinical practice in an ICU. An ethnographic approach was employed to obtain an in-depth insight into healthcare providers’ perspectives, behaviours, and interactions of interprofessional collaboration in a medical surgical ICU in a community teaching hospital in Canada. Approximately 160 hours of observations were undertaken and 24 semi-structured interviews with healthcare workers were conducted over a period of 6 months. Data were analysed using a directed content approach where two national competency frameworks were used to help generate an understanding of the practice of interprofessional collaboration. Healthcare professionals demonstrated numerous instances of interprofessional communication, role understandings, and teamwork in the ICU setting, which supported a number of key collaborative competencies. However, organisational factors such as pressures for discharge and patient flow, staffing, and lack of prioritisation for interprofessional learning undermined competencies designed to improve collaboration and teamwork. The findings demonstrate that interprofessional competencies can play an important role in promoting knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behaviours needed. However, competencies that promote interprofessional collaboration are dependent on a range of contextual factors that enable (or impede) individuals to actually enact these competencies.     

Using reflective practice in interprofessional education and practice: a realist review of its characteristics and effectiveness

ABSTRACT

This article presents the results of a realist review of the use of reflective practice interventions aimed at improving interprofessional education and collaborative practice (IPECP). Reflective practice is recognized as one of the determining factors in health and social service professionals’ skills development and maintenance, as well as in the establishment of good collaboration practices. In this respect, it is a key element of interprofessional education (IPE) and its relevance in this field is being asserted more and more strongly. However, few studies have been conducted to document its effectiveness. The purpose of this article is therefore to advance knowledge in this field. Searches in health and social services electronic databases identified six studies presenting reflective practice interventions in IPECP aimed at enhancing collaboration among students or practicing professionals. Analysis provided preliminary answers as to the effectiveness of reflective practice interventions in IPECP, as well as pertinent information on the best methods for achieving effectiveness. It concludes by proposing recommendations designed to change reflective practice interventions in IPECP and by stressing the importance of further research in order to document more fully the effectiveness of reflective practice in IPECP and to identify the most promising intervention methods in this regard.     

Bedside nurses’ roles in discharge collaboration in general internal medicine: Disconnected,disempowered and devalued?

Collaboration among nurses and other healthcare professionals is needed for effective hospital discharge planning. However, interprofessional interactions and practices related to discharge vary within and across hospitals. These interactions are influenced by the ways in which healthcare professionals’ roles are being shaped by hospital discharge priorities. This study explored the experience of bedside nurses’ interprofessional collaboration in relation to discharge in a general medicine unit. An ethnographic approach was employed to obtain an in‐depth insight into the perceptions and practices of nurses and other healthcare professionals regarding collaborative practices around discharge. Sixty‐five hours of observations was undertaken, and 23 interviews were conducted with nurses and other healthcare professionals. According to our results, bedside nurses had limited engagement in interprofessional collaboration and discharge planning. This was apparent by bedside nurses’ absence from morning rounds, one‐way flow of information from rounds to the bedside nurses following rounds, and limited opportunities for interaction with other healthcare professionals and decision‐making during the day. The disconnection, disempowerment and devaluing of bedside nurses in patient discharge planning has implications for quality of care and nursing work. Study findings are positioned within previous work on nurse–physician interactions and the current context of nursing care.