What's My Role Again? Cultivating Interprofessionalism, Role Knowlege, and Role Clarity Through Case-Based Learning

Abstract

As healthcare has shifted away from physician-centered practice, in favor of a patient-centered model, the importance of interprofessional team-based practice was recognized. Early exposure, practice working through clinical cases in teams, and learning each profession’s roles are essential determinants of successful interprofessional collaboration (IPC). Although interprofessional role comprehension is widely accepted as one of four core competencies of interprofessional education (IPE) and lack of role comprehension is associated with medical errors; literature measuring said construct is lacking. Role knowledge and clarity are two crucial skills that encompass identifying the roles and limitations of various professions’ scopes of practice and discerning which professional is best equipped to undertake a task in a particular situation. The present study investigated a novel IPE intervention employing role centered, small group casebased learning (CBL) sessions, integrated throughout an anatomy course for firstsemester occupational therapy (OTD), physical therapy (DPT), and physician assistant (MPAS) students. Additionally, fourth-year medical (MD) students participated in the IPE intervention by serving as near-peer facilitators for each of the small groups. A sequential explanatory, mixed methods design was employed to examine participants’: 1) acquisition of role knowledge, 2) demonstration of role clarity, 3) views of IPC after engaging in CBL sessions, and 4) perceptions of the intervention itself. The present study addressed the previously mentioned gap in the literature by exploring a CBL intervention’s influence on role comprehension (a previously unquantified aspect of IPE), in addition to their IPE-related perceptions. The aforementioned CBL intervention effectively improved role knowledge and clarity when implemented in-person; however, no significant changes were demonstrated in the virtual cohort. While many positive perceptions of the intervention and IPE experience were found, some misconceptions about professions and inhibitory power dynamics were also identified. Despite the latter findings, the CBL intervention examined in this study can serve as an effective model for cultivating IPE through enhanced role knowledge and clarity among health professional students.