Abstract
Therapy students in an early childhood training program demonstrated improved self-ratings of teaming competencies and use of teaming strategies and approaches. Entry-level training on collaborative practice enhances the quality of early intervention/early childhood programs.
Primary Author and Speaker: Christine T. Myers
Additional Authors and Speakers: Kristen Lewandowski, Claudia Senesac, Kim Dunleavy
Interprofessional collaboration (INT) improves services for children and families in early intervention and early childhood practice (EI/EC), however, limited research exists on training for INT in EI/EC with entry-level therapy students (Muhlenhaupt et al., 2015; Vuurberg et al., 2019). We investigated a multicomponent approach (i.e. situated, collaborative, reflective learning) to teach INT in EI/EC. Participants were occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology students in an EI/EC training program. The research questions were: does a multicomponent approach result in improvements in participants’ self-ratings of INT competencies related to EI/EC?, and what strategies for INT do participants identify for use prior to and then report using during a situated EI/EC learning experience? We used a one-group pretest-posttest design with qualitative content analysis of open-ended, reflective questions. A scholar competency self-rating form with Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) INT competencies (2016) and reflective questions were completed before and after a situated learning activity (i.e. interprofessional assessment with a young child and their caregiver). Wilcoxon sign-rank tests compared changes in the median scores of the self-rating items. The median values of the INT items significantly increased following the second workshop (n = 18; p =.00). Content analysis of reflective questions demonstrated that students planned to use and identified using INT strategies consistent with IPEC’s INT competencies. The multicomponent training showed promise in equipping students to work interprofessionally in their entry-level programs, thus potentially improving collaborative practice following graduation and enhancing the overall quality of EI/EC programs. The small sample size limits generalizability. Future research should explore maintenance of INT competencies after training and the influence of training on EI/EC outcomes.
Muhlenhaupt, M., Pizur-Barnekow, K., Schefkind, S., Chandler, B., & Harvison, N. (2015). Occupational therapy contributions in early intervention: Implications for personnel preparation and interprofessional practice. Infants and Young Children, 28(2), 123–132. https://doi.10.1097/IYC.0000000000000031
Vuurberg, G., Vos, J.A.M., Christoph, L.H., & de Vos, R. (2019). The effectiveness of interprofessional classroom-based education in medical curricula: A systematic review. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice, 15, 157–167. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2019.01.007
Interprofessional Education Collaborative. (2016). Core competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice: 2016 update. Washington, DC: Interprofessional Education Collaborative.