In and out of the curriculum: an historical case study in implementing interprofessional education

Although international reports have called for making interprofessional education an integral part of health professions education, most interprofessional learning activities remain voluntary and occur a single time. Barriers to implementing comprehensive interprofessional education come from forces both internal and external to institutions. Understanding the historical context for how one graduate health professions school attempted to overcome these barriers will provide a longitudinal perspective that may assist other institutions with their interprofessional education efforts. The case of the Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions shows that, despite being founded with a mission to educate students from different professions together, interprofessional education does not emerge naturally. An analysis of archival documents, academic catalogs and oral history interviews revealed that early attempts focused on requiring students to take common courses. Later, the faculty created voluntary interprofessional learning activities. Neither approach achieved its intended goals until the Institute developed deliberate strategies to counter the internal and external barriers to integrating interprofessional education. This historical case study suggests that sustainable interprofessional education initiatives require both an organizational home and a permanent place in the curriculum.