Abstract
Abstract
Background
Acquiring competencies in intraprofessional collaboration (IntraPC) across the primary care (PC)–secondary care (SC) interface is essential to prevent adverse outcomes in the increasingly complex care for older adults. The workplace-based learning intervention Secondary Primary care Intraprofessional Collaboration Education (SPICE) was developed to foster IntraPC learning among co-located PC and SC residents during a geriatric rotation in the Netherlands. Understanding how learning through SPICE translates into clinical practice remains challenging and may require innovative evaluation methods. This study explored the longer-term effects of SPICE using a new collective evaluation approach.
Methods
We used the effects forum, a collective evaluation method originating from applied social sciences that combines timeline analysis, mixed focus groups, and knowledge co-construction. PC and SC residents, supervisors, and patients collaboratively constructed a timeline of IntraPC learning moments during SPICE and the following six months. Participants discussed how and why these moments influenced their collaborative behavior and clinical practice. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis.
Results
Seventeen participants took part in two distinct effects forums. Residents reported gaining insight into patients’ care continuum and developing greater mutual understanding across PC and SC. This facilitated more proactive handovers, which could improve continuity across care settings. Residents also transferred IntraPC learning into new contexts through reflection and dialogue, creating a ripple effect of learning that extending beyond the initial intervention.
Conclusion
Workplace-based IntraPC learning can lead to meaningful changes in collaborative behavior and clinical practice. By capturing shared experiences over time, the effects forum provided insight into how learning translated into practice and supported ongoing reflection. Collective evaluation offers a valuable approach to understanding the impact of workplace learning interventions in complex healthcare settings, with potential implications for further improving continuity and patient safety through IntraPC learning across the PC-SC interface.