Interprofessional Laboratory With Nursing and Communication Sciences and Disorders Students.

Interprofessional Laboratory With Nursing and Communication Sciences and Disorders Students Interprofessional Education (IPE) is a critical focus for health care programs in higher education, as delivery of complex health care requires a team-based and collaborative approach (Interprofessional Education Collaborative Expert Panel, 2011; Thistlewaite, 2012). Although nurses and speech–language pathologists commonly work together as members of interprofessional teams in settings such as hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and schools, limited interaction and collaboration exists in preprofessional educational programs (Coufal & Scherz, 2013). In an effort to begin a team-based and collaborative model among students entering the health professions, the school of nursing and department of communication sciences and disorders (CSD) at one university created a collaborative laboratory experience. Three goals were established and included the CSD and nursing students demonstrating proficiency in (a) describing common types of communication disorders, (b) communicating the significance of nonverbal communication through reflection of the simulated client interaction, and (c) expressing the importance of collaboration with other disciplines. During the spring and fall semesters of 2015, approximately 60 undergraduate sophomore CSD and 50 first-semester junior nursing students in a traditional 4-year nursing program participated in a combined laboratory experience. The CSD students acted in the role of “client,” with five communication disorders: hearing impairment in an older adult, an adult with Broca’s aphasia, a child with autism, an adolescent with a fluency disorder, and an adult with a traumatic brain injury or the accompanying parents or caregivers. These five communication disorders were chosen due to their frequency of occurrence and variation in receptive, expressive, and social language skills. The nursing students were given the challenge of completing a brief nursing assessment on a simulated client presenting with communication difficulties. The CSD students learned about what it was like to either be a client with a communication disorder, or the caregiver or family member of a client with a communication disorder, and the challenges they may encounter with communicating pertinent health information. The interprofessional learning activity primarily occurred in the 10-bed nursing simulation laboratory. Prior to the IPE laboratory, the CSD faculty member attended a nursing class and presented a brief (i.e., 30-minute) overview of communication disorders to the nursing students. The nursing faculty member attended a CSD class and presented an overview of a nursing assessment. Several weeks prior to the IPE laboratory, the CSD students were assigned in groups of two or three to one of the five specific communication disorders and prepared to perform as the client or in the role of caregivers. On the day of the IPE laboratory, a 10-minute prebriefing was held at the start of the 60-minute laboratory to explain the purpose and function of the laboratory and describe the laboratory rotations. The nursing and CSD student teams were divided across the 10 simulation laboratory beds. The CSD students acted in the role of simulated client and performed as the client with the specific communication disorder or as a caregiver. The nursing students spent 40 minutes completing a brief (i.e., 8to 10-minute) assessment on all of the five types of clients. The 10-minute laboratory debriefing focused on feedback related to what the students learned in completing an assessment and how they felt in the role of client or caregiver. Students were also asked to complete a five-question survey regarding their involvement in the combined laboratory. Results from the debriefing session and the completed surveys revealed that students made progress with each of the established goals. Specifically, both nursing and CSD students were able to describe the basic characteristics of the five communication disorders, reflect on the difficulties interacting and completing health assessments on individuals presenting with communication disorders, and note that some communication difficulties were more challenging than others. Students also consistently expressed the importance of nonverbal communication, such as facial expressions and gestures, along with the helpful role of caregivers. A review of student survey responses revealed that students enjoyed having the opportunity to interact with another department or field of study, learned some important information about the department or other field of study that will apply to future employment, and would recommend this experience for other students entering the fields of nursing and CSD. Establishing a collaborative and interactive laboratory experience with CSD and nursing faculty and students has helped provide a foundation for future team-based learning opportunities. Based on student feedback and observations by faculty regarding the value of this learning experience, the authors