Table 1 Interprofessional student-led clinic for people living with Parkinson’s disease

Overview

There was no specific funding for the clinic. The program was delivered from 8.30am – 1:00pm, five times throughout the year. At each clinic, three or four real patients, six to eight students, and at least one clinical educator and one educator were in attendance. Booking for the clinic were organised by the university clinical school staff.

Clinic participants:

Students: Eight final year students from medicine, pharmacy and allied health (physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology) in any one clinic

Patients: The patient volunteers from community groups for people living with Parkinson’s disease and their carers and families. They were asked to identify three areas which they hoped the clinic would focus on, for example increasing exercise, or fall prevention.

Educators:

At each session, there was at least two clinical educators, who ran an initial orientation session (and provided supervision (pharmacy and medicine) with an aged care consultant in whose unit the clinic ran, on standby.

Clinic schedule and record keeping

Students were provided with a 30 minute orientation led by a clinical educator, and given the Parkinson’s Disease Clinic General Assessment Form to guide the patient assessment. Then in pairs matched with their own health care profession, students rotated through four ‘stations’, spending 30 minutes with each patient. Each time students met with a patient, the patient notes were passed to the next pair of students. Students then organised a interprofessional team meeting lasting 30 minutes, and then presented to the academic educator(s) (30 minutes) who gave feedback. Together, students were required to produce an integrated patient management plan to present to the supervisor academic. In this clinic the patient did not hear the management plans as the patient partners had other activities to attend.