Inter-Professional Teamwork in Medical Education: Diabetes care as a case study

Background: Medical students are expected to work in an interdisciplinary team on graduation. Students in medicine, nursing and other health professions traditionally have little contact with one another in their undergraduate education and little planned collaborative learning experiences designed to promote such relationships.The literature shows that separate training encourages different health professional groups to maintain their independence and autonomy. Changes in patterns of health care delivery and the structure of the Health Service have impacted upon the development of the health professions and have prompted calls for collaboration between professions in health and social care.Aim•Explore the feasibility of introducing interdisciplinary education to second year medical; students using Diabetes Mellitus as a chronic disease requiring inter-disciplinary; management.; • Evaluate the benefits to students learning by using written free-form feedback.; • Design: A lecture on diabetes mellitus that included a patient perspective, followed by a; joint presentation delivered within the classroom by members of the diabetes; multidisciplinary team (a specialist dietician, podiatrist and clinical nurse), on team; work and their role in the management of diabetes.