Interprofessional ethics learning between schools of pharmacy and dental medicine

A case-based interprofessional education (IPE) ethics activity between pharmacy and dental students was developed and evaluated. Eighty-two third-year pharmacy and 51 first-year dental students were divided into teams for two sessions. The IPE activity involved the student teams analyzing two cases at each session utilizing an ethical decision-making process followed by debriefing of each case. Assessments included pre-/post-Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS), pre-/post-individual ethics knowledge quiz, pre-team ethics knowledge quiz and post-student perception survey. The results indicated no significant differences in RIPLS scores although scores indicated a high readiness for interprofessional learning including teamwork and collaboration among pharmacy and dental students. When comparing pre-/post-ethics knowledge quiz scores a significant difference was found between individual and team scores as well as between professions. Perception survey results were highly favorable toward the value of interprofessional learning activities. The sessions resulted in enhanced knowledge about ethical decision-making.