A course for developing interprofessional skills in pre-professional honor students using humanities and media

Abstract

Background and purpose: To design and implement an undergraduate honors course for pre-health professional students that develops interpersonal skills through use of a variety of humanities.

Educational activity and setting: A three credit hour course in an honors seminar sequence was developed by pharmacy practice faculty and with input from faculty in mass communications, philosophy, applied communication studies and history. The course utilized a variety of media such as literature, film, and podcasts to foster student discussion about a variety of health-related topics. Topics included public health, stigmatization, portrayals of health care providers, patient experiences, health care ethics, aging, and death and dying. Students were assessed using pre-class assignments and reflective writings as well as a formal written and oral presentation on a selected health-related book. A quasi-experimental design was used to assess the impact of the course on desired course outcomes.

Findings: The first course offering was to 22 undergraduate pre-health professional honors students. Pre- and post-course surveys on students' perceptions and students' reflective writings revealed achievement of desired course outcomes. Post-course evaluations also revealed positive perceptions about the course.

Discussion: The design of this course provided an outlet for students to read and enjoy various forms of media, while also meeting its goal of exposing students to a variety of humanities. The course allowed students to think critically about various health care issues, and to begin to develop interpersonal skills.

Summary: The course could be adapted for pharmacy by developing affective domains of the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Standards.

Keywords: Health humanities; Honors program; Interpersonal skills; Literature; Media; Pre-professional.