Teaching Person-Centered Care and Interprofessional Collaboration through a Virtual Mental Health World Café: A Mixed...

Area of Science:

• Health Professions Education
• Mental Health Care
• Interprofessional Practice

Background:

• Effective healthcare requires understanding diverse patient experiences.
• Interprofessional collaboration is crucial for comprehensive patient care.
• Person-centered care models emphasize patient values and preferences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of a virtual interprofessional education (IPE) event on health profession students.
• To enhance students' understanding of mental illness and person-centered care.
• To evaluate the importance of interprofessional collaboration from student perspectives.

Main Methods:

• Convergent mixed-methods design integrating quantitative and qualitative data.
• Development and implementation of a virtual Mental Health World Café event.
• Utilized paired sample t-tests, surveys, interviews, and reflective journals.

Main Results:

• Quantitative analysis showed changes in student perceptions of interprofessional socialization and valuing.
• Qualitative data revealed profound impact of consumer experiences on student learning and engagement.
• Findings aligned with the Patient-Centered Care in Interprofessional Collaborative Practice Model.

Conclusions:

• Virtual IPE events involving consumers can significantly enhance student understanding of mental illness and person-centered care.
• Direct consumer interaction is a powerful catalyst for interprofessional learning.
• The project demonstrated the value of integrating lived experiences into health professions education.