College of Pharmacy, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
Center for the Advancement in Interprofessional Education, London, UK.
BMC Med Educ. 2019 Jul 24;19(1):278. doi: 10.1186/s12909-019-1689-5.
The aim of this study was to explore the perspectives of faculty members and academic administrators, at Qatar University College of Pharmacy, towards interprofessional education (IPE) and collaborative practice by identifying enablers, barriers and resources needed to implement IPE within the pharmacy curriculum.
A qualitative methodology was employed using focus groups discussions. Two focus groups were conducted, one focus group with faculty members (n = 5) and another focus group with academic administrators (n = 5) at Qatar University College of Pharmacy. Focus groups were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim by an independent experienced transcriber and validated by the study principal researcher. Thematic analysis was undertaken to generate key themes and subthemes.
The study participants highlighted a number of enablers and challenges encountered as a result of the initial IPE events, for integrating IPE into the pharmacy curriculum. Many provided recommendations and suggestions for effective implementation of IPE. Analysis of the results focused on three main categories: enablers, barriers and recommendations. Overall, seven major themes were identified: 1) intrinsic enabling factors (initial IPE experiences, cross-appointed faculty, accreditation); 2) extrinsic enabling factors (national policy & legislation and advances in pharmacists' role); 3) student related benefits (roles & responsibilities and agents for change); 4) student hindering factors (student engagement, perceptions & attitudes and gender issues); 5) partnering academic institutions (logistical issues, familiarity with other curricula and commitment); 6) practice environment (hierarchy, healthcare professionals' attitude and lack of collaborative practice) and 7) IPE delivery (dedicated structure, IPE curriculum and extrinsic support).
Pharmacy academics had positive perceptions towards IPE suggesting a high level of support and readiness to pursue IPE and an opportunity for pharmacy academics to drive the IPE agenda forward in Qatar. However, a number of challenges were reported. These are important to consider to ensure the development of effective strategies for the integration and enhancement of IPE and collaborative practice.
本研究旨在通过确定在药学课程中实施跨专业教育（IPE）所需的促进因素、障碍和资源，探讨卡塔尔大学药学院教职员工和学术管理人员对 IPE 及合作实践的看法。
采用定性方法，使用焦点小组讨论。在卡塔尔大学药学院进行了两个焦点小组讨论，一个是教职员工焦点小组（n=5），另一个是学术管理人员焦点小组（n=5）。焦点小组的讨论内容被录音，并由一位经验丰富的独立转录员逐字记录，由研究主要研究员进行验证。采用主题分析法生成主要主题和子主题。
研究参与者强调了由于最初的 IPE 活动，在将 IPE 整合到药学课程中所遇到的一些促进因素和挑战。许多人对有效实施 IPE 提出了建议。对结果的分析侧重于三个主要类别：促进因素、障碍和建议。总体而言，确定了七个主要主题：1）内在促进因素（最初的 IPE 经验、交叉任命的教师、认证）；2）外在促进因素（国家政策和立法以及药师角色的进步）；3）学生相关益处（角色和责任以及变革推动者）；4）学生障碍因素（学生参与度、观念和态度以及性别问题）；5）合作学术机构（后勤问题、对其他课程的熟悉程度和承诺）；6）实践环境（等级制度、医疗保健专业人员的态度和缺乏合作实践）和 7）IPE 交付（专门的结构、IPE 课程和外在支持）。
药学教师对 IPE 持积极态度，表明他们高度支持并愿意追求 IPE，为卡塔尔药学教师推动 IPE 议程提供了机会。然而，报告了一些挑战。这些问题很重要，需要考虑，以确保制定有效的策略，促进 IPE 和合作实践的整合和加强。
