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Florida Public Health Review

Publication Date

9-28-2020

Abstract

There is a need for interprofessional learning in public health, and healthcare education and study abroad opportunities provide a unique context in which interprofessional programming can be integrated into the learning experience. Public health training programs have an important role in furthering interprofessional learning. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to describe a short-term study abroad course to examine students’ perceptions of interprofessional learning readiness after ten-day travel to Geneva. Mixed-methods design with pre- and post-assessments was used. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Survey was used to assess interprofessional learning of eleven participants. Quantitative analyses revealed that respondents had favorable perceptions of interprofessional learning, indicating that it would help them understand personal limitations and communication with other healthcare professionals. Qualititave analyses indicated that students expected to grow both personally and professionally, have new experiences, and expand their knowledge of public health. Furthermore, findings revealed that students felt that they could identify what role they would play on an interprofessional team and that critical problem solving skills could be grasped with learners from other disciplines. While there is a paucity of research focusing on short-term study abroad programs for interprofessional learning including public health, this study provides evidence that interprofessional learning occurs during these experiences and is important to students. This work also provides the foundation for future work exploring larger groups of interprofessional students’ experiences within a study abroad context.

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