Interprofessional training for undergraduate rehabilitation therapy students at the University of the Witwatersrand enhancing cancer rehabilitation in South Africa

Background: The national cancer strategy includes guidelines for rehabilitation as part of a collaborative team for cancer care. Interprofessional engagement is a critical attribute of a rehabilitation team. Thus, exposing students to live case scenarios in physiotherapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT) and speech-language pathology (SLP) provides development of Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) core competencies.
Objectives: To evaluate students’ acquisition of interprofessional competencies (Values and Ethics; Roles and Responsibilities; Interprofessional Communication; and Teams and Teamwork) in cancer rehabilitation and explore their qualitative experiences of interprofessional engagement.
Method: A cross-sectional survey design with open-ended questions was administered to final year rehabilitation students (PT, OT and SLP) post interprofessional education (IPE) session with a cancer survivor (CS).
Results: Of 140 enrolled final year students, 64 completed the IPEC survey on Redcap. Descriptive and qualitative data analysis were conducted. High levels of agreement across all IPEC domains were observed, with the highest seen in Teams and Teamwork. Three themes, (1) Scope of practice, (2) Teamwork, (3) Experience of the IPE activity, emerged from the open-ended questions.
Conclusion: High agreement across IPEC domains indicates enhanced collaborative attitudes and role clarity, despite limited exposure to oncology in participants’ undergraduate curricula. The presence of a CS added authenticity, fostering empathy and ethical practice. Students gained insight into professional boundaries, effective communication strategies and teamwork in complex care settings. Findings support integrating authentic, condition-specific IPE into curricula to strengthen collaboration and professional identity formation.
Clinical implications: Undergraduate Health Sciences students can gain exposure to national cancer policies through IPE sessions. Future research can explore if the skills learnt translate to clinical teamwork post-graduation.