Comparison of the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning and the rate of contact among students from nine different healthcare courses

Background: Despite the growth in the interprofessional literature, there are still few studies that have evaluated the differences among courses and periods in relation to Readiness for Interprofessional Learning. Likewise, the relationship between the influences of contact among students from different professions is still controversial. Objectives: To evaluate whether greater contact among students from diverse health courses could be associated, with improved Readiness for Interprofessional Learning (RIPLS) at the undergraduate level and to compare the RIPLS among healthcare courses, analyzing differences among courses and periods of their academic training. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: A Brazilian public university. Participants: Students enrolled in the first and final periods of nine healthcare courses. Methods: The rates of contact between students and the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning were assessed. A comparison between students from these nine healthcare courses was carried out. Results: A total of 545 (73.45%) students answered the questionnaire. The highest RIPLS scores were from Nursing (42.39), Dentistry (41.33) and Pharmacy students (40.72) and the lowest scores were from Physical Education (38.02), Medicine (38.17) and Psychology (38.66) students. The highest rates of contact between students (RC) were from Physical Education, Nutrition and Psychology students and the. lowest RC were from Pharmacy, Social service and Dentistry. There was a significant effect of "healthcare course" on RIPLS. Comparing RIPLS and RC between the first and final years we found that, considering all courses, there was an increase in the RC, whereas a decrease in RIPLS scores. No correlation was found between RIPLS and RC in general. Conclusion: The current study found that RIPLS scores are very different between healthcare students. Although we found a significant increase in the RC, there was a decrease in the RIPLS scores. These findings lead to a greater understanding of the difficulties facing and potential for interprofessional education.