The interprofessional education (IPE) literature abounds with examples of IPE and their evaluations, invariably demonstrating improved outcomes for collaborative care. The aim of this research was to identify models of IPE in health curricula reported in the literature to clarify key characteristics of the models. Searches were conducted in Pubmed (Ebsco), CINAHL (Ebsco), Cochrane Library, PsychINFO (Ebsco), Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases for articles describing models of IPE. A total of 25 papers met the inclusion criteria. Models fell broadly into: (a) extra-curricular activities or partially integrated models (28%), and (b) integrated models, that is, models where IP activities were embedded across the whole curriculum (72%). A total of 40% of included papers presented phased models designed to incrementally develop interprofessional capability. However, major barriers exist to fully integrated interprofessional curricula: they require a major curriculum restructure, and a willingness on the part of health professionals to reconsider their professional identities. A curriculum that focuses on the patient and on ways to deliver the most appropriate personalized care is proposed. In such a curriculum, the focus can shift from profession-based care to expertise-based care that is likely to be delivered by a team of skilled health professionals.
Keywords: Interprofessional education; healthcare education; interprofessional competency; interprofessional learning; professional identity.