Developing Practice Guidelines for Interprofessional Educational Collaboration between Design and Healthcare Fields

Abstract: Designing effective assistive technology (AT) requires knowledge of materials, design methodology, and user needs.Creating AT supporting daily tasks benefits from collaboration with Occupation Therapy, yet this is not a professionalnorm. To address AT design challenges and promote future professional collaboration, Thomas Jefferson Universitydeveloped an interprofessional education (IPE) co-design program for Occupational Therapy Doctoral (OTD) andMasters of Industrial Design (MSID) students. Using experiential learning modules, students co-create assistive devicesfor individuals living with Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva (FOP), a rare genetic disorder causing progressiveimmobility. Students experience real-world contexts and collect ongoing data; FOP user-experts participate in thedesign process via standardized interviews and structured feedback recorded during device user-testing sessions.Here, we present our in-progress approach to creating evidence-based practice guidelines for future collaborationsbetween healthcare professionals and designers based on an IPE collaboration. This IPE program offers insight intohow to structure effective interdisciplinary programs and implement co-design methodology.

Keywords: interdisciplinary collaboration, assistive devices, design education, cultural inclusivity, practice guidelines, industrial design

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1002968

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