Interprofessional Education at Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Improve Confidence in Interprofessional Teamwork and Patient Handoffs.

Patient safety is a cornerstone of medical practice, and teamwork is critical in creating a culture of safety. Training osteopathic medical students in interprofessional communication is hypothesized to improve confidence in coordination and effective transitions of responsibility within the healthcare team. The Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation adopted Interprofessional Education Collaborative goals in 2019. Several studies have assessed attitudes towards teamwork and patient safety at the level of a hospital unit or team. However, there are few studies analyzing college of osteopathic medicine student confidence levels over multiple campuses in reference to specific Interprofessional Education Collaborative goals. Our study retrospectively analyzed student responses to the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Graduating Seniors Survey. Our analysis showed that participation in interprofessional education was positively correlated with increased confidence in performing safe and effective patient handoff from one healthcare team to another and confidence in working as a member of a healthcare team. Additionally, we identified specific interprofessional educational activities that correlate with increasing confidence in specific Interprofessional Education Collaborative goals. This study indicates that interprofessional education is a vital component of effective medical school curricula, but some training activities are more effective than others in building student confidence.