Interdisciplinary innovation in aged care: the Wicking Teaching Aged Care Facility program

In 2011 the Wicking Centre at UTAS initiated a program to develop Teaching Aged Care Facilities (TACF). The TACF program deployed an action research approach to support the implementation of large scale multi-disciplinary student placements, while concurrently executing a program of organisational development. The program findings reveal a 1400% increase in student placements, involving nine disciplines and 716 students across six RACFs over four years. Moreover, in four RACFs student placements have not only been sustained since 2014, but have expanded to include additional disciplines. Evidence of statistically significant improvements in dementia knowledge (p=.01) (DKAT2) and improvements in students’ collaborative practice (p=.01) and inter-professional attitudes (p=.02) (UWEIPQ) are apparent, while qualitative data indicates improved care for residents. A key outcome has been enhanced organisational research readiness, with 72 staff functioning as active research participants, such that it now includes a third stream related to care redesign.