Premium
Interprofessional student teams augmenting service provision in residential aged care
Author(s) -
Kent Fiona,
Lai Francis,
Beovich Bronwyn,
Dodic Miodrag
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
australasian journal on ageing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1741-6612
pISSN - 1440-6381
DOI - 10.1111/ajag.12288
Subject(s) - interprofessional education , medicine , health care , nursing , family medicine , perception , psychology , medical education , neuroscience , economics , economic growth
The aim of this study was to determine the usefulness of student‐led interprofessional consultations within residential aged care in augmenting patient care and enhancing student education. Volunteer fourth and final year health‐care students conducted interprofessional consultations. In a mixed methods design, residents' health‐care changes and perspectives were collected prospectively, and student and educator perceptions were measured by survey and interview. Sixteen aged care residents were consulted by interprofessional teams. Students identified two new health issues and proposed 17 recommendations for referrals and five changes to medication management. At six‐weeks follow‐up, two recommendations had been acted upon clinically, and two medication changes had been implemented. Reasons for the low uptake of recommendations were determined. Residents, students and educators reported high levels of satisfaction. Residential care facilities offer a useful interprofessional learning environment. Student consultations are positively regarded by patients, students and educators and may augment existing health services.