Next Steps: Teaching Future Generations an Interprofessional Approach to Diabetic Foot Ulcer Care.

Abstract

Introduction: We aimed to assess the effectiveness of interprofessional teaching sessions focused on the care of patients with diabetic foot ulcers.

Methods: We conducted a pre-/post-intervention, quasi-experimental study with repeat evaluations on either side of the teaching sessions (n = 28). Surveys and chart reviews were used to assess changes in attitude, knowledge, practice, and patient outcomes.

Results: All 5 infectious disease fellows favorably reviewed the sessions. Positive baseline attitudes towards interprofessional care further improved with respect to shared learning and teamwork (5-point Likert scale scores pre- and post-session: 4.13 vs 4.44, respectively, P < 0.01). No other significant changes were observed.

Discussion: Our sessions were associated with improved attitudes toward interprofessional care but likely need to be augmented with experiential learning to achieve practice and outcome improvements.