Development of Interprofessional Healthcare Leadership Modules for Undergraduate Students

Interprofessional education developed as a strategy to utilise interprofessional teamwork to meet the communities’ needs while addressing the shortage of healthcare professionals ([CSM4]). The focus thereof is on healthcare professionals from different disciplines who are learning from each other, while sharing common responsibilities to the benefit of the patients and communities ([CSM1];  [CSM2]). In order to instill a sense of interprofessional teamwork, modules have been developed by the School of Healthcare Sciences for undergraduate healthcare students in integrated healthcare leadership. Aspects that are addressed include professionalism, ethics, communication and conflict management in teams, community health models, health education literacy, project development and management in community health and leadership. These modules are developed for one semester per year of the first three academic years of the bachelor’s degree programmes in nursing science, human nutrition, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, radiography, speech therapy and audiology. During the alternative semesters complementary discipline-specific modules are presented in integrated healthcare leadership.

Action research was used to develop the curriculum as described by Riding, Fowell and Levy (1995) [CSM3] by a team of healthcare educators representing the various disciplines. The steps included identification of the problem, review of the knowledge and adapting knowledge to the local context. Exit level outcomes of the various disciplines were assessed to identify shared outcomes, as well as discipline-specific outcomes related to integrated healthcare leadership. The shared outcomes were further analysed for gradual sequential progression and plotted over the first three years of the programmes according to the National Qualification Framework. The outcomes were synthesised and assessment criteria, assessment techniques and teaching strategies were derived from it. Logistical planning for implementation followed. This was the first cycle of the action research, followed by the cycles of implementation and evaluation.

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 [CSM1] Burch, V. 2014. Editorial: Interprofessional education – is it ‘chakalaka’ medicine?. African Journal of Health Professions Education. 6(1): 2.DOI:10.7196/AJHPE.

 [CSM2] Frenk, J., Lincoln, C., Bhutta, Z.A., Cohen, J., Crisp, N., Evans, T., Fineberg, H. et al. 2010. Health professionals for a new century: transforming education to strengthen health systems in an interdependent world. The Lancet, 376(9756): 1923-1958. Viewed 31 March 2015 from http://www.thelancet.com

 [CSM3] Riding P, Fowell S, Levy P. 1995. An action research approach to curriculum development.  Information Research 1995;1(1). http://InformationR.net/ir/1-1/paper2.html (accessed 19 June 2014)

 [CSM4] WHO Health Professions Network Nursing and Midwifery Office, Department of Human Resources for Health. 2010. Framework for action on interprofessional education and collaborative  practice. http://www.who.int/hrh/nursing_midwifery/en/ 

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