Entrepreneurship is a way to seize opportunities that exist for occupational therapy in health care (Anderson & Nelson, 2011; Herz, Bondoc, Richmond, Richman, & Kroll, 2005). Developing new health services that are financially sustainable often requires collaboration between health care practitioners and business professionals. However, little is known about how to best prepare health care professionals to work with non–health care professionals.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a learning activity for students in a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) and in a management undergraduate program (MGT) in terms of (1) mastery and application of entrepreneurship concepts and (2) enhancement of interprofessional education and collaboration (IPEC) competencies (teamwork, communication, identifying roles and responsibilities, and identifying professional values).

Following institutional review board approval, 61 MSOT students and 40 MGT students were assigned to small interprofessional groups for an 8-wk learning activity focused on the development of a business plan for a new health care service, to meet an unmet community need. Students’ comprehension of entrepreneurial concepts and their attitudes toward IPEC competencies were evaluated using a mixed-methods quasi-experimental design. Pre- and posttesting was conducted using a researcher-developed Entrepreneurship Concept Learning (ECL) assessment and the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS; Parsell & Bligh, 1999). Additionally, at the end of the activity, participants completed a researcher-developed IPEC Competencies survey based in core competencies identified by the IPEC Expert Panel (2011) and reflective debriefing papers.

Internal validity for all quantitative assessments was satisfactory (αs < 8.35–9.92). RIPLS, IPEC survey, and ECL were analyzed using nonparametric paired t tests to identify pre–post changes. Debriefing papers were coded and ranked for themes. Findings included significant positive changes pre–post intervention on ECL (p < .001), but not on RIPLS. Eighty percent of IPEC Competencies survey responders reported that the activity was “helpful” or “very helpful” to promote their IPEC skills. No significant differences were found between the MSOT and MGT students. Themes from debriefing papers included enhanced learning, benefit from collaboration, and respect for knowledge of others.

In conclusion, carefully designed learning activities for MSOT and MGT students can promote development of entrepreneurial and interprofessional competencies. These capacities are essential for realizing our Centennial Vision of being a powerful and widely recognized profession (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2007). During the presentation, specific guidelines for developing, implementing, and assessing such activities will be shared.

American Occupational Therapy Association. (2007). AOTA’s Centennial Vision and executive summary. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 61, 613–614. http://dx.doi.org/10.5014/ajot.61.6.613

Anderson, K. M., & Nelson, D. L. (2011). The Issue Is—Wanted: Entrepreneurs in occupational therapy. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 65, 221–228. http://dx.doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2011.001628

Herz, N., Bonoc, S., Richmond, T., Richman, N., & Kroll, C. (2005). Becoming an entrepreneur. Administration and Management: Special Interest Section Quarterly, 21(1), 1–4.

Interprofessional Education Collaborative Expert Panel. (2011). Core competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice: Report of an expert panel. Washington, DC: Interprofessional Education Collaborative.

Parsell, G., & Bligh, J. (1999). The development of a questionnaire to assess the readiness of health care students for interprofessional learning (RIPLS). Medical Education, 33, 95–100. http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2923.1999.00298.x