The Role of Higher Education in Facilitating Communities of Practice to Support Health Professionals Practice

Abstract

The increasing complexity of health issues and health care delivery calls for strategies to develop the practice of health professionals. Communities of practice support the development of capabilities of its members through sharing practical experience, creating solutions towards a common goal and the development of new ideas for practice. They offer a unique approach in healthcare above other professional development activities due to their ability to situate learning within experiences and promote reflective practice. This chapter tells the stories of two communities of practice led by the higher educator sector designed for nutritionists wanting to improve the population’s health through strategies that create environments to make healthy food choices easy. The case examples show the potential of communities of practice to develop participant’s perceived competence and reduce their sense of professional isolation. Trust among a small group of likeminded colleagues with similar practice roles, together with experiential learning and effective facilitation, were essential for success. Having a facilitator as a member of the academic community was perceived to be valuable due to their ability to be independent, promote reflective practice, support learning and evaluate the impact. There remains a need to develop more robust methods to evaluate the impact of communities of practice in the health sector.