Interprofessional geriatric education in a post-pandemic world: Comparing outcomes of in-person versus virtual simulations

Interprofessional education (IPE) enhanced with simulation for pre-licensure health care students can be used to teach a collaborative interprofessional team approach to promote positive health outcomes in the older adult population. Little is known about outcome differences between in-person and virtual IPE. A multi-step, simulation-enhanced IPE was developed based on Wagner’s Chronic Care and Constructivism Active Learning theoretical frameworks and implemented in-person and virtually for cohort comparison. Learning outcomes were the advancement of interprofessional collaborative competencies. Two cohorts of students from nursing, pharmacy, counseling, social work, and speech therapy, participated in consecutive Fall semesters (n = 74 in-person, n = 74 virtual). Pre- and post-IPE measures of teamwork using the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale (ISVS) total and individual items showed within-group advancement of competencies (p = 0.0054 in-person, p = 0.0024 virtual). Comparison between groups of pre/post mean change scores on five ISVS items showed no statistically significant difference. Satisfaction ratings using a researcher-created survey of items on a 5-point Likert scale demonstrated significantly higher scores for in-person education on 7 out of 10 individual items and the overall satisfaction rating, (p < 0.5). Virtual learning has become more commonplace following the pandemic, and these results suggest there are benefits for both methods.