Planning for interprofessional change in primary health care: Exploring the use of the interprofessional resource centre

Abstract

Importance: Resources to support change are needed for solo practitioners who are transition-ing to family health teams (FHTs) which involve multiple health disciplines working together to provide team-based care. Objective: The purpose of this project was: (1) to explore the use of an online resource, the Interprofessional Resource Centre (IRC), when planning for interprofessional change and; (2) to explore the experience of planning interprofessional change. Design and setting: Six FHTs organized under the structure of one Local Health Integrated Network (LHIN) in Ontario, Canada. Intervention: Participants in six FHTs were directed to the IRC to support planning inter-professional change. In addition, two of the six FHTs participated in pilot site meetings with investigators where they received in-person support to apply the information from the IRC to an interprofessional activity. Results: Pilot site participants reported the IRC was useful for planning, but they cited lack of time to use it as a key barrier. When planning for interprofessional change, providers experienced challenges with physician buy-in and team dynamics. As a strategy for change, providers would like to learn from other FHTs who have experienced success with interprofessional change; at the LHIN level, they saw a need for more educational opportunities. Participation was found to be low among those only receiving online support. Conclusion and relevance: Based on the results of the study, it appears that online resource centers do have some value in knowledge translation when combined with in-person meetings. In exploring the planning of interprofessional change in primary health care teams, it was found that buy-in with physicians is a key challenge.