Abstract

Objectives: Quality improvement and patient safety (QI/PS) education is required for students in undergraduate healthcare training. Interprofessional education provides an excellent collaborative opportunity to teach the core concepts of this topic; however, implementing a successful interprofessional activity often is challenging due to complex curricular and scheduling differences. To meet this need, we implemented a case-based interactive workshop educating students from four disciplines on process mapping, fishbone diagrams, creating aim statements, and implementing plan-do-study-act cycles.

Methods: From November 2020 to April 2023, medical, nursing, physician assistant, and pharmacy students participated in a 2-hour virtual QI/PS workshop that included large- and small-group activities. After the session, students voluntarily completed a survey assessing the importance of QI/PS knowledge, their understanding of the roles and responsibilities of each profession, and the impact of interprofessional collaboration on QI/PS.

Results: A total of 445 students participated in the survey. Ninety percent rated QI/PS knowledge as either “very important” or “extremely important.” A good majority also understood the various professions’ roles and responsibilities, although differences were noted when analyzing across disciplines. Following the workshop, an overwhelming majority also understood the impacts of interprofessional collaboration.

Conclusion: This activity offered students a meaningful opportunity to collaborate with other disciplines to learn the fundamentals of QI/PS while meeting the core competencies of teamwork, communication, and understanding of roles and responsibilities. These are skills they can utilize now and throughout their careers in clinical practice.