Interprofessional Education Among Occupational Therapy Programs: Faculty Perceptions of Challenges and Opportunities

OBJECTIVE. We investigated occupational therapy faculty beliefs about and perceptions of interprofessional education (IPE) and to identify differences in faculty positions on IPE between programs affiliated with an on-campus academic health care center (AHC) and programs not affiliated with an on-campus AHC. METHOD. Online surveys were distributed by email to 1,466 faculty at programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education. The results were described using descriptive statistics and crosstabulations. RESULTS. Faculty responses supported the need for IPE. Ethics was ranked as the most important IRE competency among both the AHC and the non-AHC groups. IPE was more commonly included in the curriculum of programs with an on-campus AHC than in the curriculum of those without an AHC. CONCLUSION. The majority of occupational therapy faculty supported the need for IPE: however. many reported limitations with faculty or time constraints as barriers to IPE.