Pharmacists are key professionals in the collaborative working process and are integral members of the healthcare team. However, there is paucity of information regarding their perspectives towards interprofessional education (IPE) and collaborative practice. The aim of this systematic review is to synthesise, summarise and evaluate the quality of the quantitative and qualitative literature related to the perspectives of pharmacy students, pharmacy faculty and practising pharmacists toward IPE and collaborative practice. The perspectives included their views, experiences and attitudes with a special focus on their perceived benefits and challenges in relation to IPE and collaborative practice. An integrated mixed method systematic review was conducted. Four electronic databases were searched for articles published in English between 2000 and 2015. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to assess the quality of the studies. Twenty-nine articles were identified meeting the selection criteria from the first initial search of 8512 articles. Seventeen articles (59%) targeted pharmacy students, 11 articles (38%) focused on practising pharmacists and 1 study (3%) was related to pharmacy faculty. The majority of studies were conducted in the United States (n = 13), were published in the last five years (83%, n = 24) and employed quantitative methods (52%, n = 15). The two commonly used survey instruments to measure the perspectives were: different versions of the RIPLS (35%, n = 6) and the IEPS scale (35%, n = 6). Fourteen of the 29 studies were rated as low quality (MMAT = 25%), eight studies were rated as average quality (MMAT = 50%), four were rated as high quality (MMAT 75%) and three were rated as very poor quality (MMAT 0%). No studies were rated with 100% MMAT quality. Overall, the findings suggest that pharmacy students, practicing pharmacists and faculty valued interprofessional education and collaborative practice and had positive attitudes towards it. Five main findings have been identified from this review: heterogeneity in reporting IPE research, traditional professional image of the pharmacist, lack of longitudinal follow-up, lack of IPE research on faculty and paucity in mixed method studies in terms of quality and numbers. These findings will provide an opportunity to stakeholders and policy makers to develop and implement IPE activities that are meaningful, comprehensive and unique. Sustained efforts are required not just in undergraduate curricula but also in healthcare settings to improve and promote an interprofessional culture at individual and organisational level.

The COVID-19 pandemic, and ensuing physical distancing measures, poses challenges for researchers in the field of interprofessional care. Pandemic management has highlighted the centrality of interprofessional working to effective healthcare delivery during crises. It is essential to find ways to maintain interprofessional research that has commenced, while also designing research to capture important learning from pandemic management and response. However, it also creates opportunities for new research projects and novel research designs. This discussion paper explores ways of adapting existing research methodologies and outlines potential avenues for new research. Specifically, considerations to bear in mind when designing interprofessional research during the pandemic include research ethics and integrity, research design, data collection methods, research opportunities, implications and limitations. Interprofessional research can continue to make a valuable contribution in informing global responses to COVID-19 and in planning for future global health crises. We call for, insofar as possible, for interprofessional research to continue to be developed during this time.

Interprofessional education (IPE) is an emerging concept in the Middle East with a number of health professional degree programs continually striving to meet international accreditation requirements to enhance the quality of education and ensure high standards are maintained. Using the College of Pharmacy at Qatar University (CPH QU) as a model, this article describes the IPE initiatives coordinated through the College’s IPE Committee, with representation from fourteen programs at four Healthcare institutions: Qatar University; Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar; the University of Calgary in Qatar; and the College of North Atlantic in Qatar. These activities are based on the model proposed by the University of British Columbia across the different pharmacy professional years. Learning objectives for these initiatives were selected from the IPE shared competency domains and competency statements developed for Qatar context. A meeting with six faculty members, who have been instrumental to designing and executing the IPE activities in the previous 2 years, was convened. Faculty members reflected on IPE activities and collaborations with other participating programs. A structured SWOC (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Challenges) framework was used to guide discussion. The discussion was recorded and notes were taken during the meeting. Raised points were categorized into each SWOC category for the final analysis. Implementation of IPE program is a major undertaking with a number of challenges that require invested time to overcome. This article highlights the importance of incorporating IPE into healthcare curricula to graduate students ready for collaborative practice in the workforce. Learning objectives for IPE initiatives need to be based on shared competency domains. When developing and implementing an IPE program it is necessary to align activities under a strong theoretical framework. This should be done under the leadership of an IPE steering group or committee to oversee the integration of IPE into the healthcare curriculum. The article presents many lessons learned through IPE implementation that are relevant to other academic institutions keen to incorporate IPE into their programs and also provides a successful model for integrating IPE into healthcare curricula.

(2020). Interprofessional education and collaborative practice research during the COVID-19 pandemic: Considerations to advance the field. Journal of Interprofessional Care. Ahead of Print.

The study aimed to assess burnout, resilience, and levels of depression, anxiety, stress and fear among community pharmacists during the pandemic, and examine if fear of COVID-19 is associated with these outcomes of interest. A cross-sectional survey of community pharmacists in Qatar was conducted. Pharmacists’ burnout was measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory: Human Services Survey for Medical Personnel (MBI-HSS™ for MP-Mindgarden). Resilience was assessed using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 (CD-RISC-10). Depression, anxiety, and stress were measured by the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Fear of COVID-19 was assessed by the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S). 256 respondents completed the survey and were included in the final study analysis (response rate: 42.7%). Overall, participants reported a moderate level of burnout as illustrated in the mean scores of the three burnout dimensions; 20.54 (SD = 12.37) for emotional exhaustion, 6.76 (SD = 6.22) for depersonalization, and 36.57 (SD = 9.95) for personal accomplishment. Moreover, depression, anxiety and stress were reported by 44.8%, 53.2% and 25.4% of particiants respectively. Participants had shown moderate resilience (mean score: 27.64 (SD = 8.31)) and their mean score fear of COVID19 was 15.67 (SD = 6.54). Fear of COVID-19 was a statistically significant and an independent predictor of depression, anxiety, and stress levels. The pharmacists experienced moderate burnout but moderate resilience, which indicates their potential to overcome difficulties. Future interventions at the personal, national and organizational levels are required to enhance the pharmacists’ wellbeing by decreasing stress, improving self-efficacy and resilience, and preventing burnout.