Impacts of inter-professional student placements in care homes

In 2020 my colleagues and I were concerned that whilst COVID 19 had shown that care homes are a fundamental part of the health and social care system, embedded perceptions meant that such provision was viewed as a last resort for those who end up residing there, those working there and families who have relatives who need extra care. This was further compounded by the lack of placement opportunities for pre-registration nursing and allied health learners across Greater Manchester to see the delivery of person-centred care in care home environment.

We wanted to develop a project that aimed to contribute to challenging perceptions of care home work, whilst promoting best inter-professional (IP) practice and increasing student placements. While IP training environments are increasingly seen as a key stage in advancing health and social care systems, little is known about IP student training schemes in the context of the UK care home environment. Taking a Greater Manchester approach with external funding from NHS England, we conducted a feasibility study in 2021 and then conducted a longitudinal study in 2023. The aim of which was to evaluate the long-term impact of an IP training scheme within five care homes on 3 groups: students, residents, and care home staff.

The objectives were:

1. To develop and evaluate four cycles of an IP initiative.
2. To measure, evaluate and understand the impact interprofessional education has on care home staffs and students’ knowledge, skills, and personal development.
3. To explore the impact IPE has on care home resident’s experiences of their care.
4. To disseminate key learning and best practice.

The Results Forty learners from across Dietetics, Physiotherapy, Nursing (Adult, Learning Disability and Mental Health Fields of Practice), Sports Rehabilitation and Occupational Therapy were placed in 5 care homes.

Some learners attended full time, others as part of a split-site placement. Weekly multi-disciplinary team (MDT) meetings were attended by students, care home staff and residents, to work on resident’s individual goals as part of an integrated team. Action learning was utilised to address the goals and develop collaborative problem-solving, critical thinking, and shared learning experiences. We evaluated the project by surveys that measured changes in students' and staff members' perceptions of the positive impact involvement had and interviews to gather in-depth insights into their experiences.

Our findings demonstrated participation in an IP scheme leads to:

• Statistically significant improvements in care home staff and learners’ knowledge, skill, and personal development.
• Opportunities for continuous professional development and knowledge sharing among diverse health and care professionals.
• Development of clinical, leadership, communication, reflective and time management skills.
• Learners thinking positively about social care.
• Residents reporting a heightened sense of well-being from being actively engaged in care planning.
• Changes in the home
  • revision and reformulation of care plans
  • diet sheets, menu changes and food tasting
  • personalised exercise plans and activities
  • support with postural care
  • new equipment.

If you would like to know more about this work, see: IPE STUDENT TRAINING CARE HOMES: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY