Community-Based Education in Global Low-Resource Settings: A Unique Interprofessional Collaborative Experience in Primary Care Delivery

Abstract

The complex nature of global health issues requires multidisciplinary efforts, namely, interprofessional education (IPE) and collaborative practice. For American students to develop skills and competencies that contribute to global primary care workforces, they must receive community-based education in various environments around the world. This article presents a global health education program that offers community-based, health-related IPE that is centered on primary care, collaborative practice, and a unique three-way partnership. Using a “classroom in the field” hybrid model, this program placed graduate and undergraduate students from different majors into experienced multidisciplinary health care teams and gave them hands-on, firsthand public health experiences in eight low-resource settings in Guatemala. The curricular design was informed by the Consortium of Universities for Global Health’s global health education competencies. At the completion of the program, all partners, participants, and local communities involved saw significant positive outcomes. Notably, students were able to articulate the essentials of primary care in a global context and demonstrate knowledge and skills in global health competencies. Such community-based approaches promote student understanding of disease prevention and health promotion as key elements of primary care that could improve health outcomes for underserved global populations.