title: Students' perceptions of interprofessional learning through facilitated online learning modules.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Asynchronous e-learning is an appealing option for interprofessional education (IPE) as it addresses the geographic and timetabling barriers often encountered when organizing activities across educational programs.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study examined the extent to which pre-licensure students were able to learn with, from, and about each other through completion of innovative online IPE learning modules.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seventy-seven students completed e-learning modules developed through a consortium of educational institutions. Evaluation was primarily qualitative through focus groups, interviews, analyses on off-line discussions and an online feedback form.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Qualitative analyses of the discussion fora revealed that students were able to solve problems collaboratively, clarify their professional roles, and provide information from their professional perspective. Focus groups and interviews reinforced that students recognized the importance of working together and implicate clinical education as an important venue to reinforce learning about collaborative practice. Analyses of the online feedback form suggest the need for clear processes related to group assignments and deadlines.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Students learned about each other's role, solved problems together and had positive perceptions of the online modules as a venue for interprofessional learning. Results are encouraging to those interested in using e-learning in IPE as part of an overall curriculum.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Science, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Solomon
authors.forename: Sue
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Baptiste
authors.forename: Pippa
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Luke
authors.forename: Carole
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Orchard
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rukholm
authors.forename: Lorraine
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carter
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: King
authors.forename: Gissele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Damiani-Taraba
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000379:methods*; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006281:Health Occupations / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D017145:Models, Educational; D018794:Problem-Based Learning / Q000379:methods; D015397:Program Evaluation / Q000379:methods; D012576:Schools, Health Occupations / Q000458:organization & administration; D013336:Students, Health Occupations / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult