(9) Interprofessional Service Learning - a new approach in medical education

         Ruth Stashefsky Margalit, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha NE 

 

Service Learning is an educational pedagogy that supports adult learner approach, directs students to participate in organized service activities that meet identified community needs, enhances student understanding of course content, enhances professional skills, and increases sense of civic responsibility.

At UNMC, Interprofessional Service Learning was launched with five sustainable ‘legacy’ projects involving hundreds of students from various health professions (public health, medicine, pharmacy, allied health professions, and nursing) in underserved communities in Omaha. Students from the school of Social Work, College of Information Systems and Technology, and the School of Communication from the neighboring college campus, also took part in the service learning experiences: Domestic Violence - EMPOWER project (YWCA), Homeless Shelter -‘Finding a Voice’, Refugees health - Bridge to Care’, Douglas County Correction Center – education, screening, treatment program for STDs in the jail, and the Reducing Health Disparities project - Decreasing the Bone Marrow Donor Deficit among African American Adults.

The presentation will review the rational for Interprofessional Education and the benefits of Service Learning pedagogy. Course development, planning history, and developments will be shared, along with faculty recruitment and training program, tool development to assess student learning, and the overall evaluation plan of the program. The presentation will be followed by a discussion, engaging the audience to share experiences, challenges, and successes in interprofessional work, service learning and academia –community partnerships.

 

Learning Objective: 

Participants will be able to describe principals of both interprofessional education and service learning pedagogy and discuss the application of these principles into medical and general health education.

 

 

 

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