KEY POINTS:
It sounds like the premise for a new 'Big Brother' reality TV show - five university students thrown into a flat together to learn about each other's jobs.
However, the project in question is actually teaching future health professionals the importance of working across disciplines.
The project is called Teamworking in Primary Health Care, and is a collaborative effort involving AUT, the University of Auckland and the Waitemata District Health Board. It is the first of its kind in New Zealand.
The five students - three from AUT and two from the University of Auckland - have been living together on weekdays for a month in a Wellsford house. They come from four different health professional degrees - pharmacy, nursing, medicine and physiotherapy.
One of the project leaders, AUT's Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences Deputy Dean Wendy Horne, says the experience will enable students to gain essential skills for primary health care and understanding of other health professionals' roles.
"It's imperative that health professional students learn to work together, because if they work in silos in today's health environment, that's when mistakes will happen," says Ms Horne.
In PHOs all health providers and practitioners are expected to be involved in the organisation's decision-making and work, says Ms Horne, rather than one group being dominant.
"This means health professionals need to have an ever-increasing spectrum of knowledge and expertise and, more importantly, need to work collaboratively with each other to maximise patient and community safety and health outcomes."
The initiative is being funded by the Ministry of Health, and other placements are planned during the next 18 months.
The students went through a preparation phase before their placement and they are monitored during the clinical components of the project.
