Overall, the experience of the practice lab was a positive one. I learned many leadership skills as well as the ability to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios. The practice labs were crucial to my gaining a comprehensive understanding of public health issues, as well as, helping me to develop and expand my critical thinking skills. This experience helped me to gain a greater appreciation of each profession represented in the field of public health. Each profession offers a unique perspective on complex issues.

Competencies addressed by the Practice labs:  

MPH 7: Assess population needs, assets, and capacities that affect communities’ health.

MPH 14: Advocate for political, social, or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations

Both competencies were addressed during the second practice lab. Our target population for the assignment was senior citizens. Our team successfully assessed the health needs of the senior citizen population including mental health and social determinants of health. We also identified access to healthy food and transportation as a barrier for this community. The mobile health unit was identified as a community asset that would directly impact the health of the community.

Our final deliverable outlined the need for a mobile health unit and its benefits to the community. The executive summary included research and other evidence that supported the need for mobile health units to advocate for funding and support from policymakers. The deliverables also outlined recommendations to monitor and evaluate the impact of the health vehicle that hopefully would support funding and sustainability. 

The practice labs were amazing opportunities for collaboration, however, they require a tremendous amount of work and cooperation. I noticed both practice labs occurred during the later part of the semester when there are many assignments, and projects due from core courses. I would recommend not having the first IPE project occur in the first semester of the program. The beginning of the program is too soon in my opinion for the assignment. We are learning new material and for some, this is a career change. There has not been enough time to process the new information, to apply it in an interprofessional collaboration space. I would recommend the second semester, and early in the semester. With the collaboration happening during the second semester, and early in the semester there is less stress on the students to complete the assignment along with assignments required from the other courses. Many students expressed experiencing additional stress and mental health decline from the practice lab occurring during a heavy time in the semester.

With any group project, there is a risk that not all group members will equally contribute to the work. In both cases of the IPE project, I led the group assignment and had group members that did not contribute. Thankfully, I was able to reach out to my professors for assistance and learned how to lead the group forward. In one instance, the project was a grade for the public health students but only participation for others. The practice lab carried more weight on the grade of some students versus others. Perhaps, moving forward this is not the case to encourage full participation. 

Generally speaking, I enjoyed the experience of the practice labs. I enjoyed the application of the theory learned during lectures. It helped me to feel more comfortable and prepared for my future in the public health field. It also helped me to assess my strengths, and weaknesses with the material learned.