Implementing an interprofessional palliative care education program to speech-language therapy and dietetic students

Area of Science:

• Allied Health Education
• Palliative Care
• Interprofessional Learning

Background:

• Palliative care education for allied health professionals is under-researched.
• A longitudinal study developed and evaluated a new palliative care curriculum for speech-language therapy (SLT) and dietetic (DT) students.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and assess a novel, mixed-modality, interprofessional palliative care education program.
• To improve student knowledge, confidence, and perceived preparedness in palliative care.

Main Methods:

• Stage I: Content analysis of interviews with recent SLT and DT graduates (n=9) on palliative care preparedness.
• Stage II: Curriculum development integrating Stage I findings and literature.
• Stage III: Implementation and evaluation of the hybrid curriculum (e-learning, lectures, simulation) with pre/post surveys and 6-month follow-up (n=68, 42, 15).

Main Results:

• Stage I identified 10 key topics in palliative care for allied health professionals.
• Student feedback showed significant increases in knowledge and confidence ratings (median 3-6 to 5-8).
• Knowledge and confidence gains were sustained and higher at 6-month post-graduation.

Conclusions:

• A mixed-modality, interprofessional palliative care education program is effective.
• The program enhances allied health students' knowledge, confidence, and preparedness for palliative care practice.
• This educational approach demonstrates merit for improving essential palliative care competencies.