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OBJECTIVE:

Multidisciplinary care has been shown as the most effective option for chronic disease. The aim of the Team-link study was to assess the effectiveness of an intervention to improve teamwork among general practitioners (GPs), practice staff and allied health professionals (AHPs). This paper describes changes to teamwork using qualitative data collected in the study.

DESIGN:

INTRODUCTION: Despite an explosion of interest in improving safety and reducing error in health care, one important aspect of patient safety that has received little attention is a systematic approach to education and training for the whole health care workforce. This article describes an evaluation of an innovative multiprofessional, team-based training program that embeds patient safety within quality improvement methods.

INTRODUCTION:

Health professions students interested in future rural practice locations spend a week learning about and investigating all aspects of small town personal, professional and community life. This augments the mainly clinical experience provided by clinical rotations they complete as part of their professional academic training program.

METHODS:

INTRODUCTION:

Care for the frail elderly is often provided by several professionals. Collaboration between them is essential, but remains difficult to achieve. Interprofessional education (IPE) can improve this collaboration. We developed a 9-hour IPE program for primary care professionals from 7 disciplines caring for the frail elderly, and aimed to establish whether the program improved professionals' interprofessional attitudes and attitudes toward collaboration, collaboration skills, and collaborative behavior. We also evaluated learners' reactions to the program.

PubMed URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18202992

PubMed URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18412909

PubMed URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18800283

The CPD(iQ) Saskatchewan Project (ICEC(4)) is directed by the Inter-Professional Continuing Education for Collaborative Client Centered Care Committee, representing the disciplines of medicine, nursing, physical therapy, pharmacy, kinesiology and dentistry at the University of Saskatchewan. It was designed to serve two target audiences: the urban underserved community that would access services at the West Winds Primary Care Centre; and health professionals at the West Winds who would deliver educational modules to those in need.

A pioneering and ground-breaking effort to organize interprofessional education (IPE) was initiated in 1986 at the Faculty of Health Sciences at Linkoping University in Sweden. The so-called "Linkoping IPE model" has now yielded practical experience and development of curricula for over 20 years. The basic idea of this model is that it is favorable for the development of students' own professional identity to meet other health and social professions already into their undergraduate studies.