Professional Inclusivity: Creating Professional Development Learning Environments to Facilitate Learning Across the Health Professions

Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions (03/09/26) Polansky, Maura N.; de Nooijer, Jascha; Fabry, Goetz

Learning environments that bring together multiple health professions can foster interprofessional learning (IPL), but only when conditions support genuine professional inclusivity. Researchers explored such conditions within Master in Health Professions Education (MHPE) programs by conducting semi structured interviews with 14 students and faculty across four programs, followed by member checking to validate themes. Three organizing principles emerged as essential for professionally inclusive learning environments: intentionality, reflecting the deliberate role of faculty in designing inclusive structures; leveling the playing field, which involves cultivating a culture where learners and faculty are regarded as equals regardless of professional background; and focusing on commonalities, grounded in participants' shared clinical and teaching experiences and similar educational needs. These principles inform practical recommendations for fostering inclusivity and highlight professional inclusivity as a valuable conceptual framework for advancing research on IPL.

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