Comparison of Medical and Physician Assistant Student Performance in Interprofessional Pharmacology and Clinical Medicine Courses

Introduction: This study replicates a study of interprofessional education (IPE) of physician assistant (PA) and second-year medical students conducted by Denis Oliver early in the history of the University of Iowa PA Program. Currently, there is resurgent interest in IPE in the health sciences, but sparse research evidence available on the topic. Methods: Mean exam score averages for PA and second-year medical (M2) students were compared over a recent 4-year period (August 2003–May 2007) for medical pharmacology and clinical medicine courses using de-identified existing data. Means were compared with t-tests utilizing SPSS 15. Results: Based on data gathered in 1978–1981, Oliver reported small significant differences between the groups: M2 students scored higher than PA students by 2.9 points in clinical medicine and 4.5 points in pharmacology. The current study showed less than a 1-point difference between the groups in both courses, which only reaches statistical significance in pharmacology, and which is likely of no practical significance. Discussion: The original study by Oliver validated an interprofessional approach to training PA students alongside medical students at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. The current study supports the practicality of combining PA and M2 students in didactic settings, despite their disparate levels of prior academic preparation. Possible advantages include efficient use of faculty and institutional resources and the potential for fostering a team approach to medical care early in students’ professional development. This model may be most applicable to PA programs located at academic medical centers.