IPR.Global Pearls - Learning in lockdown: exploring the impact of COVID-19 on interprofessional education

A series of publications in the British Journal of Midwifery are in progress from members of the Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education (CAIPE) Research Experience Subgroup. 

The series aims to explore international experiences of ‘learning in lockdown’ from the perspectives of students, academics, and service users as IPE delivery transitioned to emergency remote teaching during the COVID pandemic.

The papers offer a rich and unique data source to inform future IPE provision with respect to the liminal changes that had to be made because of COVID restrictions. The series considers the context of IPE provision, the impact of COVID-19, student experiences, academic experiences, impacts on practice-based learning, assessment of IPE, impact on service user provision and lessons learnt for future planning.  

The goal of this series is to share insight into, and authentic experiences of, the global impact of the COVID pandemic on IPE provision. The papers report on the benefits and challenges of interprofessional learning in lockdown, offering the global community opportunity to build resourcefulness, resilience, capacity, and readiness for managing the future of interprofessional education and collaborative practice.

Complete list of authors: Alison Power, Michael Palapal Sy, Maggie Hutchings, Tracy Coleman, Alla El-Awaisi, Gatera Fiston Kitema, Jean Gallagher, Chulani Herath, Nichola McLarnon, Shobhana Nagraj, Veronica O'Carroll, Melissa Owens, Vikki Park, Emma Pope, Lisa-Christin Wetzlmair, P Jane Greaves, and Elizabeth S Anderson.

LINK:  https://www.magonlinelibrary.com/doi/abs/10.12968/bjom.2021.29.11.648   

IPR.Global Scholar Spotlight - Dr. Vikki Park, Northumbria University (UK)

Hi, my name is Dr. Vikki Park. I’m a Senior Lecturer in Adult Nursing at Northumbria University in Newcastle, UK. It’s great to get the chance to virtually meet you all and I look forward to reading other member profiles in the weeks that follow. My clinical expertise is in critical care and my passion for interprofessional education (IPE) started whilst nursing and has continued into my academic career. So much so that I recently completed my PhD exploring interprofessional learning culture in adult critical care and am looking forward to publishing and further disseminating my findings. If you are intrigued (or perhaps have insomnia and are looking for a cure) you can find my thesis here: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/45621/

I have a leadership role with IPE within my university which supports around 3000 students from 9 professional fields per year. As well as researching, teaching, facilitating, and leading interprofessional activities, I’ve recently become an active member of IPR.Global and have joined the Communication Taskforce. New members are always welcome, so do get it touch and I’m looking forward to working with colleagues across the world to promote interprofessional research. In the UK, the national organisation for IPE is CAIPE (Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education) and I am a research working group member, in addition to being a member of INHWE (International Network for Health Workforce Education) an international organisation bringing healthcare educators and researchers together from all disciplines. 

It’s an exciting time for interprofessional collaboration and the COVID pandemic has emphasised the need for health and social care professionals to work together effectively more than ever on a global scale. I’m looking forward to contributing to international interprofessional research and sharing best practice with the goal of promoting high quality safe holistic patient care! 

Contact Dr. Vikki Park: vikki2.park@northumbria.ac.uk

Interprofessional Research.Global Scholar Spotlight is a regular feature that highlights member research in Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice.  

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CAIPE Research Group Publishes a Research Guide for Students and Early Career Researchers

Top Tips for Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Research: A Guide for Students and Early Career Researchers
By: Dr. Veronica O'Carroll (CAIPE and University of St Andrews)

Members of the Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education (CAIPE) research group have written this guide to aid students and early career researchers embarking on their first research journey and new to IPE/ICP research. The CAIPE research group includes research students, service users, researchers with varied experiences, and educators and practitioners from different professions and countries. The guide aims to raise awareness of academic resources and share practical advice from those who have previously experienced problems when undertaking interprofessional research in education or health and social care practice.

Access the article here:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13561820.2020.1777092

For more information email Dr. O'Carroll:
vo1@st-andrews.ac.uk