Faculty Readiness for Interprofessional Education at Public Sector University in Pakistan

Abstract

Interprofessional Education (IPE) promotes collaborative practice and improves patient-centered care. Faculty engagement is critical for implementation; however, evidence from public-sector health sciences universities in Pakistan remains limited. Objective: To assess faculty attitudes and readiness toward IPE, compare mean attitude and readiness scores across disciplines and demographic groups, and examine correlations with teaching experience. Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was done among 250 faculty members from Medicine, Dentistry, Surgery, Basic Sciences, Nursing, Pharmacy, and Allied Health disciplines. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire including reverse-coded items. Descriptive statistics summarized Likert-scale responses. One-way ANOVA compared mean scores across disciplines and age groups, independent t-tests assessed gender differences, and Pearson’s correlation examined associations between attitude, readiness, and teaching experience (p<0.05). Results: Over 80% of the participants agreed with items showing that IPE fosters cooperation, communication, and mutual respect among health professionals, while those reverse-coded received agreement levels of ≤10%. There was a statistically significant difference in the readiness level based on discipline (p=0.04), whereby nursing and medicine had higher mean scores, while pharmacy and basic sciences had lower mean scores. Gender (p=0.06) and age (p=0.056) did not show statistically significant differences. A weak, yet significant correlation was noted between attitude and readiness (r=0.279, p<0.001). Teaching experience correlated moderately and positively with both attitude (r=0.622) and readiness (r=0.716) (p<0.001). Conclusion: Faculty demonstrate positive attitudes toward IPE, with disciplinary and experience-related variations influencing readiness.