Factors affecting Australian medical students’ attitudes to inter-professional education; validity of the Readiness for Inter-Professional Learning Scale

Objectives: To examine the attitudes of undergraduate pre-professional medical students toward involvement in interprofessional learning, using the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale.

Methods: A cross sectional survey of 478 Australian medical students in the clinical years (3, 4 and 5).

Results: Positive attitudes (mean: 72%), varied significantly across course years 3, 4 and 5 (p .05). More negative attitudes to IPL in the middle (second) year of clinical placement (course year 4) compared with the prior year. A three-factor explanatory model was adopted: Shared Learning (11 items) (Cronbachalpha .92), Professional Identity (5 items) (a ¼ .75) and Teamwork/Collaboration (2 items) (a ¼ .51)components.

Conclusions: Medical students' attitudes suggest that interprofessional education should be offered early in the medical course. This study confirms the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale-Med as reliable tool when used with undergraduate/pre-professional medical students.