Inter-Professional Collaboration: Early Childhood Educators and Medical Therapist Working within a Collaboration

Abstract

Children with special needs present a unique set of challenges that require the services of specially trained educators and therapists. However, the various therapies and educational strategies are compartmentalized among these professionals. There is little interaction between educators and therapists that promote early childhood education and development. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the perceived impact of early childhood educators and medical therapists using a structured case study interview. The findings indicated that transference of professional knowledge impacts best practice for both professionals. This paper contributes to the unique perspectives of the medical community; and the connection between medicine, education, and the benefits and challenges of a transdisciplinary approach. This paper also provides insight on how to collaborate better to improve outcomes of teamwork and to develop coordinated approaches to education and service delivery to improve the efficiencies of both professionals.