Measuring health professions students' orientation toward lifelong learning

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Professional Development
• Health Professions

Background:

• Lifelong learning is crucial for healthcare professional development and program accreditation.
• Existing tools to assess lifelong learning in health professions students are limited.
• This study addresses the need for validated assessment tools in health professions education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the internal structure of a transdisciplinary adaptation of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning-Medical Students Version (JeffSPLL-MS).
• To assess the psychometric properties of the Jefferson Scale of Lifelong Learning-Health Professions Students Version (JeffSPLL-HPS).
• To provide a reliable tool for evaluating lifelong learning in health professions students.

Main Methods:

• Administered the JeffSPLL-HPS to 180 students across eight entry-level health professions programs.
• Utilized confirmatory factor analyses to examine the scale's internal structure.
• Calculated Cronbach's alpha to determine internal consistency.

Main Results:

• The JeffSPLL-HPS demonstrated good internal consistency, with an overall Cronbach's alpha of 0.85.
• Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a three-factor structure for the JeffSPLL-HPS, consistent with the JeffSPLL-MS.
• Individual factor alphas were 0.78, 0.73, and 0.62, indicating acceptable reliability.

Conclusions:

• The JeffSPLL-HPS exhibits a similar internal structure to the JeffSPLL-MS, supporting its validity.
• This scale serves as a valuable instrument for health professions programs to assess student lifelong learning values.
• The findings aid faculty and administrators in meeting accreditation standards related to lifelong learning.