Perceptions of the interprofessional education of the faculty and the level of interprofessional education competence of the students perceived by the faculty: a comparative study of medicine, nursing, and pharmacy.

Purpose: This study will compare differences in perception of interprofessional education (IPE) in the faculty of medicine, nursing, and pharmacy. It will also analyze differences in the level of importance of IPE competences and the present competence levels of their students perceived by the faculty.

Methods: The study included 115 participants from the faculty of medicine, 31 from nursing, and 23 from pharmacy. The surveys contained 21 questions on their perceptions of IPE, and perception on the nine competences of IPE. The results were analyzed using analysis of variance and χ2 analysis, and the Borich coefficient was calculated to identify the educational order of priority from the competence levels of their student of IPE.

Results: Participants of 14.8% responded that they were aware of IPE, 95.8% responded that they did not have experience in IPE, and 95.8% responded that IPE was necessary. Among the subfactors of perception of IPE, the faculty of medicine had significantly lower perceptions of the importance, effectiveness, and support of IPE (p<0.001). The present competence levels of their students were significantly lower (p<0.001) than the level of importance of IPE competences perceived by the faculty, and its perception was at its lowest in the faculty of medicine. The needs assessment of the IPE program was in the order of communication skills (10.210), conflict-solving skills (10.114), problem-solving skills (9.319), empathy skills (9.110), and collaborative leadership (8.624) among the nine competences.

Conclusion: This study will contribute to providing basic data needed to develop faculty development programs on IPE and IPE programs for their students.