Exploring interprofessional collaboration and attitudes of health sciences librarians

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2020.804

Keywords:

Interprofessional Education, Interprofessional Collaboration, Health Sciences Librarians, Attitudes and Perceptions, Survey

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed health sciences librarians’ attitudes toward interprofessional collaboration using the Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale (IEPS) and gathered information on their involvement with interprofessional activities.

Methods: The authors sent a survey to librarians in the Medical Library Association’s (MLA’s) Interprofessional Education Special Interest Group and Research Section consisting of the IEPS and questions about their prior and current experiences with interprofessional practice and education (IPE). We compared mean IEPS scores between each MLA group and several other demographic factors to assess differences in attitudes. We also compared librarians’ IEPS scores with those of previously published health professional students’ IEPS scores and thematically analyzed two open-ended questions.

Results: Health sciences librarians’ scores on the IEPS indicated positive attitudes toward IPE. There were no statistically significant differences between any group. Health sciences librarians’ mean IEPS score was similar to the mean score of health professions students from a prior study. The most commonly reported interprofessional activity was teaching or facilitating learning activities for health professions students; fewer served on committees or engaged in non-curricular activities such as grand rounds and book clubs.

Conclusion: Health sciences librarians in this study reported positive attitudes toward IPE, in line with the majority of other previously studied health professionals. Years of experience, previous health professional careers, and experience supporting IPE as a librarian had little bearing on the responses to the survey. This suggests that health sciences librarians have positive attitudes toward IPE, regardless of whether they directly support IPE programs or participate in interprofessional activities.

 This article has been approved for the Medical Library Association’s Independent Reading Program.

References

National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education. About interprofessional practice and education [Internet]. The Center; 2010 [cited 1 Aug 2019]. <https://nexusipe.org/informing/about-ipe>.

Avrech Bar M, Katz Leurer M, Warshawski S, Itzhaki M. The role of personal resilience and personality traits of healthcare students on their attitudes towards interprofessional collaboration. Nurse Educ Today. 2018 Feb;61:36–42. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2017.11.005.

Betz G, Raimondo P. Interprofessional education (IPE): limitless opportunities for libraries. Presented at: MLA ’15, 115th Medical Library Association Annual Meeting; Austin, TX; 17 May 2015.

Brennan E, Chatfield A, Eandi E. Interleague play: campus leadership through interprofessional education. Presented at: MLA ’12, 112th Medical Library Association Annual Meeting; Seattle, WA; 21 May 2012.

Lorbeer E, O’Hagan E, Knuth M. Developing an interprofessional education event. Presented at: MLA ’15, 115th Medical Library Association Annual Meeting; Austin, TX; 18 May 2015.

McEwen H, Bruce SP, Sutton J. Librarian participation in interprofessional health professions education. Presented at: MLA ’10, 110th Medical Library Association Annual Meeting; Washington, DC; 24 May 2010.

Koffel J, Reidt S. An interprofessional train-the-trainer evidence-based practice workshop: design and evaluation. J Interprof Care. 2015;29(4):367–9. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/13561820.2014.962127.

Cusack T, O’Donoghue G, Butler ML, Blake C, O’Sullivan C, Smith K, Sheridan A, O’Neill G. A pilot study to evaluate the introduction of an interprofessional problem-based learning module. Interdiscip J Problem-Based Learn. 2012 Fall;6(2):31–45. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7771/1541-5015.1350.

Babineau J, Zhao J, Dubin R, Taenzer P, Flannery JF, Furlan AD. The embedded librarian in a telehealth continuing medical education program. J Hosp Librariansh. 2018 Feb;18(1):1–14. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15323269.2018.1400346.

Ohtake PJ, Lyons A, Glogowski M, Stellrecht E, Aronoff N, Grabowski J, Zafron ML. Using an interprofessional flipped classroom educational strategy for developing evidence-based practice knowledge and skills. J Interprof Educ Pract. 2018 Jun;11:7–11. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2017.12.010.

Hanson C, Custer T, Schmidt C, Hartman T, Lyden E, List S, Wampler K, Michael K. Following the growth of Sarah’s baby: an interprofessional education activity for medical nutrition education and diagnostic medical sonography students. J Interprof Educ Pract. 2017 Jun;7:17–20. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2017.02.002.

Aronoff N, Stellrecht E, Lyons AG, Zafron ML, Glogowski M, Grabowski J, Ohtake PJ. Teaching evidence-based practice principles to prepare health professions students for an interprofessional learning experience. J Med Libr Assoc. 2017 Oct;105(4):376–84. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2017.179.

Edwards ME, ed. Interprofessional education and medical libraries: partnering for success. Medical Library Association Books Series. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield Publishers; 2016.

Kilham JP, Griffiths SP. It takes an academic village: the library’s role in supporting interprofessional communication through a book club. Med Ref Serv Q. 2017 Jan–Mar;36(1):42–8. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02763869.2017.1259903.

Haley J, McCall RC, Zomorodi M, de Saxe Zerdan L, Moreton B, Richardson L. Interprofessional collaboration between health sciences librarians and health professions faculty to implement a book club discussion for incoming students. J Med Libr Assoc. 2019 Jul;107(3):403–10. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2019.563.

Maggio L, Tannery N, Chen H, ten Cate O, O’Brien B. Evidence-based medicine training in undergraduate medical education: a review and critique of the literature published 2006–2011. Acad Med. 2013 Jul;88(7):1022–8. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e3182951959.

Shipman J, Chase-Cantarini S, Wilson RD, Weber AI. Designing an interprofessional education program from planning to implementation. In: Edwards M, ed. Interprofessional education and medical libraries: partnering for success. Medical Library Association Books Series. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield Publishers; 2016. p. 69–82.

Young L, Clark SB, Machado CK, Hinton EG, Norris MR. Medical libraries supporting interprofessional education. In: Edwards M, ed. Interprofessional education and medical libraries: partnering for success. Medical Library Association Books Series. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield; 2016. p. 117–40.

Brian R, Orlov N, Werner D, Martin SK, Arora VM, Alkureishi M. Evaluating the impact of clinical librarians on clinical questions during inpatient rounds. J Med Libr Assoc. 2018 Apr;106(2):175–83. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2018.254.

Travis L, Bickett S. Clinical medical librarians and interprofessional practice. In: Edwards M, ed. Interprofessional education and medical libraries: partnering for success. Medical Library Association Books Series. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield; 2016. p. 141–64.

Brettle A, Maden-Jenkins M, Anderson L, McNally R, Pratchett T, Tancock J, Thornton D, Webb A. Evaluating clinical librarian services: a systematic review. Health Inf Libr J. 2011 Mar;28(1):3–22. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-1842.2010.00925.x.

Mulvaney SA, Bickman L, Giuse NB, Lambert EW, Sathe NA, Jerome RN. A randomized effectiveness trial of a clinical informatics consult service: impact on evidence-based decision-making and knowledge implementation. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2008 Mar;15(2):203–11. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1197/jamia.M2461.

Aitken EM, Powelson SE, Reaume RD, Ghali WA. Involving clinical librarians at the point of care: results of a controlled intervention. Acad Med. 2011 Dec;86(12):1508–12. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e31823595cd.

Allen MP, Jacobs SK, Levy J, Pierce S, Pravikoff D, Tanner A. Continuing education as a catalyst for inter-professional collaboration. Med Ref Serv Q. 2005 Fall;24(3):93–102. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J115v24n03_08.

Thannhauser J, Russell-Mayhew S, Scott C. Measures of interprofessional education and collaboration. J Interprof Care. 2010 Jul;24(4):336–49. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/13561820903442903.

Luecht RM, Madsen MK, Taugher MP, Petterson BJ. Assessing professional perceptions: design and validation of an Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale. J Allied Health. 1990 Spring;19(2):181–91.

Lie DA, Fung CC, Trial J, Lohenry K. A comparison of two scales for assessing health professional students’ attitude toward interprofessional learning. Med Educ Online. 2013 Dec 2;18:21885. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/meo.v18i0.21885.

McFadyen AK, Maclaren WM, Webster VS. The Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale (IEPS): an alternative remodelled sub-scale structure and its reliability. J Interprof Care. 2007 Aug;21(4):433–43. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13561820701352531.

Hawk C, Buckwalter K, Byrd L, Cigelman S, Dorfman L, Ferguson K. Health professions students’ perceptions of interprofessional relationships. Acad Med. 2002 Apr;77(4):354–7. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00001888-200204000-00020.

Becker EA, Godwin EM. Methods to improve teaching interdisciplinary teamwork through computer conferencing. J Allied Health. 2005 Fall;34(3):169–76.

Cameron A, Rennie S, DiProspero L, Langlois S, Wagner S, Potvin M, Dematteo D, LeBlanc V, Reeves S. An introduction to teamwork: findings from an evaluation of an interprofessional education experience for 1000 first-year health science students. J Allied Health. 2009 Winter;38(4):220–6.

Stull CL, Blue CM. Examining the influence of professional identity formation on the attitudes of students towards interprofessional collaboration. J Interprof Care. 2016;30(1):90–6. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/13561820.2015.1066318.

Giordano C, Umland E, Lyons KJ. Attitudes of faculty and students in medicine and the health professions toward interprofessional education. J Allied Health. 2012 Spring;41(1):21–5.

Keshtkaran Z, Sharif F, Rambod M. Students’ readiness for and perception of inter-professional learning: a cross-sectional study. Nurse Educ Today. 2014 Jun;34(6):991–8. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2013.12.008.

Navickis MA, Mathieson K. U.S. dental hygiene students’ perceptions of interprofessional collaboration. J Dent Educ. 2016 Sep;80(9):1041–8.

Microsoft. Microsoft Excel 2013 (15.0.4981.1000) Microsoft Office (150.0.4981.1000) 32-bit. <http://office.microsoft.com/excel>.

Mazure ES, Alpi KM. Librarian readiness for research partnerships. J Med Libr Assoc. 2015 Apr;103(2):91–5. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3163/1536-5050.103.2.007.

Downloads

Published

2020-07-01

Issue

Section

Original Investigation