Interprofessional education in a student-led emergency department: a realist evaluation

This paper reports a realist evaluation undertaken to identify factors that facilitated or hindered the successful implementation of interprofessional clinical training for undergraduate students in an emergency department. A realist evaluation provides a framework for understanding how the context and underlying mechanisms affect the outcome patterns of an intervention. The researchers gathered both qualitative and quantitative data from internal documents, semi-structured interviews, observations and questionnaires to study what worked, for whom and under what circumstances in this specific interprofessional setting. The study participants were medical, nursing and physiotherapy students, their supervisors and two members of the emergency department's management staff. The data analysis indicated that the emergency ward provided an excellent environment for interprofessional education (IPE), as attested by the students, supervisors and the clinical managers. An essential prerequisite is that the students have obtained adequate skills to work independently. Exemplary conditions for IPE to work well in an emergency department demand the continuity of effective and encouraging supervision throughout the training period and supervisors who are knowledgeable about developing a team.