Beyond “great job”: Feedback among students on interprofessional teams

BackgroundInterprofessional competencies state that health professional students should be prepared to provide and receive interprofessional feedback.PurposeTo examine the content of interprofessional feedback among health professional students and their perceptions of giving and receiving such feedback.MethodsWe conducted a mixed methods prospective study among health professional students who gave each other feedback after an interprofessional exercise. We rated this feedback for content and specificity and clarified findings with 5 focus groups.ResultsMost of the 1520 feedback comments examined contained confirming statements; constructive and corrective statements were uncommon. Feedback on interviewing skills was more specific and constructive than feedback on teamwork skills (P < .0001). Qualitative analysis uncovered a variety of barriers students experience in feedback delivery.ConclusionsStudents in our study tended to avoid constructive and corrective comments when delivering interprofessional feedback, especially when addressing teamwork skills. Understanding the multifactorial causes for this can guide educational strategies.