Pharmacy and physician assistant students experience benefits from an interprofessional education experience incorporating motivational interviewing training

Background

While interprofessional education (IPE) has become commonplace, incorporation of motivational interviewing (MI) using standardized patients (SPs) has been rare, particularly use of a multi-pronged strategy of engagement among pharmacy and physician assistant students.

Objective

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of an IPE MI training intervention that employed students in teams interacting with standardized patients (SPs); specifically, the intervention impact on MI self-efficacy, professional identity formation (PIF) and attitudes toward interprofessional care.

Methods

First-year PharmD students (PGY1) and second-year physician assistant students (PA-S2) underwent a three-hour didactic class session featuring lecture and video simulations followed by an activity where teams of 6–8 students interacted with 5 different standardized patients (SPs). The educational intervention also featured a group debriefing session and written reflection prompted by answering several questions about how they fared with the SPs. Students' completed pre- and post- intervention surveys featuring standardized instrumentation measuring self-efficacy to engage in MI, professional identity formation, and attitudes toward interprofessional education.

Results

Students did not achieve substantive gains in MI self-efficacy, yet reported significant improvements in professional identity formation and attitudes toward interprofessional education. Qualitative comments from the post-intervention survey were positive for interprofessional integration and team dynamics (n = 14), though both PGY1 and PA-S2 students commented that academic year concordance, i.e., matching a PGY1 with a PA-S1, in future simulations could improve self-efficacy and confidence.

Conclusions

An IPE event featuring lecture, interaction with SPs, and an opportunity for mutual self-reflection on one another's roles in patient care might be beneficial to include in pharmacy and PA curriculum, even while such endeavors might be further enhanced using a longitudinal approach.