Maharajan, Mari Kannan, Rajiah, Kingston, Khoo, Suan Phaik, Chellappan, Dinesh Kumar, De Alwis, Ranjit, Chui, Hui Cing, Tan, Lui Lee, Tan, Yee Ning, and Lau, Shin Yee (2017) Attitudes and Readiness of Students of Healthcare Professions towards Interprofessional Learning. PLoS ONE, 12 (1). e0168863.

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Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the attitudes and readiness of students of healthcare professions towards interprofessional learning.

Methodology: A cross-sectional study design was used. Two different scales were used to measure the readiness for and perception of interprofessional learning; these were the 'Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale' and the 'Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale'. A convenience sampling method was employed. The sample was drawn from undergraduate students enrolled in years 1 to 5 of medical, dental, pharmacy and health sciences programme. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data.

Results: The overall response rate was 83%. The students mentioned that shared learning with other healthcare professional students will increase their ability to understand clinical problems. The students also mentioned that such shared learning will help them to communicate better with patients and other professionals. The students preferred to work with individuals from their own profession. Participants from medical, dental, pharmacy, and health sciences had a difference in opinion about 'negative professional identity', a domain of the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale. Based on the different year of study of the students, 'team work and collaboration', 'negative professional identity' and 'roles and responsibility' were the Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale domains where students had a difference in opinion.

Conclusions: Attitudes and readiness towards interprofessional learning showed significant differences among students of various healthcare professions; these differences also depended on the students' year of study. Interprofessional learning should be incorporated in the curriculum of all healthcare professional programs, which may foster students to become competent healthcare providers and understand each profession's role.

Item ID:	90389
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1932-6203
Copyright Information:	© 2017 Maharajan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Date Deposited:	14 Aug 2026 06:40
FoR Codes:	39 EDUCATION > 3999 Other Education > 399999 Other education not elsewhere classified @ 100%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2099 Other health > 209999 Other health not elsewhere classified @ 100%
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