Virtual Interprofessional Telehealth Education: Mixed Methods Evaluation

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Abstract
Background: The rapid expansion of telehealth has outpaced formal training in virtual interprofessional collaboration across health professions education. Although telehealth and interprofessional education (IPE) competency frameworks exist, limited evidence informs how longitudinal, virtual IPE curricula prepare learners for team-based telehealth practice. Objective: This study evaluated a longitudinal virtual interprofessional telehealth course to examine its impact on learners’ perceived telehealth competencies, understanding of interprofessional roles, and readiness for virtual team-based care. Methods: We conducted a mixed methods evaluation of a 4-week virtual IPE course involving graduate students from medicine, nursing, physical and occupational therapy, and social work. Learners participated in longitudinal standardized patient telehealth encounters, interprofessional debriefing sessions, and asynchronous learning activities. Quantitative outcomes were assessed using a validated postcourse survey. Qualitative data were obtained from open-ended survey responses and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Twenty-eight students completed the course and postcourse evaluation. Quantitative findings demonstrated high self-reported confidence in telehealth communication, ethical practice, interprofessional collaboration, and role clarity, with mean scores ranging from 4.4 (0.7) to 4.8 (0.6) on a 5-point Likert scale. Qualitative analysis identified three core themes: (1) development of interprofessional collaboration skills in virtual settings, (2) growth in telehealth-specific clinical and communication competencies, and (3) perceived value of longitudinal standardized patient encounters with iterative feedback. Conclusions: A longitudinal, standardized patient–based virtual IPE curriculum was associated with strong self-reported preparedness for interprofessional telehealth practice among health professions students. These findings support the use of structured, longitudinal virtual IPE models to address evolving educational needs in telehealth training.

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