Evaluating an Interprofessional Pharmacy and Dental Hygiene Case-Based Learning Activity with Student Reflections

Background: Interprofessional collaboration between dentistry and pharmacy has great value but is often lacking in education, particularly in dental hygiene programs.
Interprofessional education activity: A case-based interprofessional assignment was implemented into the dental hygiene curriculum. Students were asked to write a reflection on their experiences and complete the International Collaborative Competencies Attainment Survey (ICCAS)18 to assess changes in self-reported interprofessional competencies following the activity.
Reflections revealed a number of knowledge gain themes, with medication-related oral health concerns most frequent (53), followed by systemic adverse effects of medications (31), impact of systemic health on oral health (21), drug-drug interactions (17), and drug information (2). For practice application, students identified both future plans to collaborate with a pharmacist (25) and to apply clinical knowledge gained (25). Scores from the ICCAS increased significantly in all six of the domains following the interprofessional activity.
Discussion:
This interprofessional education (IPE) activity increased student knowledge of the pharmacy profession and provided an experience with interprofessional communication. Students identified the impact of medical conditions and medications on oral health, as well as the value of interprofessional collaboration. The activity provided the students with skills necessary to prepare for an IPE consultation and communicate with a pharmacist effectively.
This poster fulfills the priority criteria around interprofessional education curriculum between two professions with currently low levels of interprofessional engagement. This was a virtual collaboration in which pharmacists and pharmacy and dental hygiene students participated remotely in case discussion and learning.