Journal of dental hygiene : JDH
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Interprofessional Education in Dental Hygiene: Attitudes, barriers and practices of program faculty.
Purpose: Interprofessional education (IPE) experiences are an essential component in preparing dental hygiene students to participate in future interprofessional (IP) collaborations to support comprehensive patient care. The purpose of this study was to determine the attitudes, barriers and IPE practices in a national sample of dental hygiene faculty. Methods: A 25-item, researcher-designed, electronic survey was sent to 1,800 dental hygiene faculty members to determine attitudes, collaboration and practices involving interprofessional education (IPE). ⋯ Additionally, respondents from bachelor's degree programs were less likely to agree that clinical problem solving can only be learned when students are taught within their individual schools than those from associate degree programs (p = 0.022). Conclusion: Most of the dental hygiene faculty surveyed considered IPE important, incorporated it into student experiences, and wanted greater curricular emphasis on IPE. Time and institutional support may limit expansion of IPE activities and more collaboration amongst program faculty may be needed.