Impact of Student Experiences in Team-based Practice in a Student-run Outreach Clinic

If trainees from differing health professions work together in a team-based setting to provide quality care to underserved individuals, they may be more inclined to work in an interprofessional collaborative health care team. The purpose of the study was to learn about student experiences at the Indiana University Student Outreach Clinic (IUSOC) as it relates to caring for underserved individuals. The IUSOC is a free clinic run out of the Neighborhood Fellowship Church in Indianapolis, Indiana. The IUSOC clinic provides primary care-based medical services free of charge for the uninsured and underserved within the community. The patient population includes individuals with medical problems of varying acuity. Health profession students from dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, public health, and social work co-located in the clinic recently agreed to move more intentionally into interprofessional collaborative care to more effectively address a variety of patient needs. This specific assessment is the result of a unique collaboration between the IUSOC, the Indiana Area Health Education Center Network, IU School of Medicine Office of Diversity Affairs, and the IU Center for Interprofessional Health Education and Practice. The goal was to determine if students volunteering in the IUSOC are leaving with the willingness and ability to serve vulnerable populations in an interprofessional collaborative manner. In the spring of 2016, a pilot assessment was conducted with 269 health profession student volunteers. The 18-question survey assessed student’s perception of their experience serving in an interprofessional team, working with individuals from diverse backgrounds, understanding of the unique needs of underserved individuals, and their future practice intents. The results of this pilot assessment is critical as we determine how to maximize the student experience at the IUSOC so that they are equipped with the competencies necessary to practice in an interprofessional collaborative manner with diverse teams throughout the healthcare community. Objectives: By the end of this interactive discussion, participants will: Identify the value of evaluating program outcomes in assessing the effectiveness of interprofessional education within a community-based student experience. Describe the value of using a collaborative partnership to maximize the opportunity for interprofessional/team based education among health profession students in a clinical learning environment. Identify strategic next steps for assessing student competence in interprofessional team-based care

Trial to Improve Inter-professional Practice Behaviors at a Student-Run, Free Clinic

The Indiana University Student Outreach Clinic (IUSOC) is a student-run, free clinic on the east side of Indianapolis. Students from eleven different disciplines (pharmacy, social work, occupational therapy, physical therapy, law, dentistry, global health, optometry, public health, nursing and medicine), covering three institutions (Indiana University, Butler University, and the University of Indianapolis), volunteer at the IUSOC. This study is a randomized-controlled intervention designed to improve inter-professional practice knowledge and behaviors within the IUSOC. On intervention clinic days, all clinic volunteers will gather in a huddle before seeing patients for a structured didactic information session. The session will highlight the importance of screening patients for comorbid conditions and subsequently referring patients to the appropriate clinic partners through inter-professional consultations. Clinic volunteers will receive a knowledge sheet that lists the top roles of each partner organization, in addition to a description of the screening tool, to be utilized on intervention days. The information session, knowledge sheet handout, and screening tool will not be employed on clinic control days. The primary aim is to assess the efficacy of the intervention by tracking and comparing the number of consults made during control and intervention days. The secondary aims are to investigate the impact of the intervention on collaboration and relationships among the professions represented at the clinic, to assess professional students’ knowledge of services provided by partner organizations, and to assess volunteer satisfaction of inter-professional relationships. We propose the intervention will increase the number of partner-to-partner consults and improve the measures listed above. Students will be surveyed using the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale, along with other survey tools developed by IUSOC research scientists. The project aims enhance inter-professional practice behaviors in students, as well as offer insight into the roles of healthcare professional and explore attitudes regarding teamwork in a healthcare setting. Learning Objectives: Describe how IPE measures in a student-run, free clinic setting may be structured to improve teamwork among volunteers. Knowledge regarding how an innovative screening and knowledge protocol may lead to increased inter-professional practice behaviors among student volunteers. Explore personal attitudes and values regarding teamwork in a healthcare setting