Health Promotion Practice and Interprofessional Education in Aging: Senior Wellness Fairs

• Published in: Gerontology & geriatrics education Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 145 - 166
• Main Authors: Diwan, Sadhna, Perdue, Megan, Lee, Sang E., Grossman, Brian R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Routledge 02.04.2016; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Adult; Adult Learning; Aging; Aging (Individuals); Aging Education; Collaboration; Community Health Services - organization & administration; Community Relations; Community Resources; Community-Institutional Relations; Cooperative Behavior; Education; Exhibits; Female; Geriatrics; Geriatrics - education; Gerontology; Health Behavior; Health Personnel - education; Health promotion; Health Promotion - organization & administration; Humans; Interdisciplinary Approach; interprofessional education; Interprofessional Relations; Learning; Male; multidisciplinary collaboration; Older people; Physical Environment; Public Health; Universities; university-community partnership; Wellness; Young Adult; interprofessional education; multidisciplinary collaboration; health promotion; university-community partnership
• ISSN: 0270-1960; 1545-3847
• DOI: 10.1080/02701960.2015.1005290

Senior wellness fairs (SWFs) offer a unique opportunity for community health promotion and interprofessional education (IPE). The authors describe and evaluate the impact of a 3-year, university-community SWF collaboration on interprofessional competencies among students across multiple professional programs. Participation in the SWF enhanced student knowledge and skills in providing health promotion information to older adults in an interprofessional, collaborative setting as indicated by mean scores on the Perceived Learning Outcomes Survey, an instrument developed for this project. Open-ended data highlighted aspects of the SWF that students found most useful (interaction with seniors, community resources, interprofessional learning, and self-awareness) and most challenging (communication barriers, limited opportunity for interaction, and physical environment). Pre- and posttest scores on the Multidisciplinary SWF Practice Learning Quiz, another instrument developed for this project, illustrated improvement in student understanding of other professions and the importance of interprofessional cooperation to promote and maintain healthy aging. Implications and suggestions for structuring learning opportunities that combine community health promotion practice and interprofessional learning are discussed.