Community action projects: community-engaged quality improvement for medical students

Healthcare Quality Improvement (QI) is an essential skill for medical students to acquire, although there is insufficient empirical research which suggests the best educational methods to do this. This study explored the experiences of medical students participating in two versions of a Community Action Project (CAP) which gave medical students the opportunity to learn QI skills in a community setting. The first version (GPCAP) was pre-pandemic where students identified and delivered QI projects on placement in general practice to improve local population health. The second version (Digi-CAP) ran remotely where students worked on QI projects identified by local voluntary sector organisations focused on local community priorities during COVID-19.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with volunteers from the two cohorts of students who had taken part in quality improvement initiatives. Transcriptions were independently coded by two researchers and analysed through thematic analysis.

Sixteen students were interviewed. Whilst students had mixed experiences of completing their CAP, engagement and successful learning was associated with the following themes from the two versions of QI CAP projects: finding a sense of purpose and meaning in QI projects; preparedness for responsibility and service-driven learning; the importance of having supportive partnerships throughout the project duration and making a sustainable difference.

The study provides valuable insights into the design and implementation of these community-based QI projects, which enabled students to learn new and often hard to teach skills, whilst working on projects which have a sustainable impact on local community outcomes.