Date of Award
2019
Document Type
Project
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Committee Chair
Jeffrey Hamilton
Abstract
Design Thinking in Health Sciences is a multi-year project that focuses on applying design thinking pedagogy across the health sciences in the undergraduate and graduate educational experiences through pop-ups and curriculum infusion at Elon University. In addition, the project serves to partner with local community organizations to provide “real-life” exposure on how design thinking can be implemented to serve the greater community. A convenience sample of graduate and undergraduate health science students completed a version of the INCODE-ICB-v5 survey that measures many of the same identified characteristics of The Ten Principles of Good Interdisciplinary Teamwork. Surveys were distributed pre and post design thinking pop-ups throughout the project’s 3-year period. There was statistical significance in the overall growth of the students post exposure as well as in the individual and interpersonal domains of the INCODE-ICB-v5. The results conclude that exposing undergraduate and graduate health science students to design thinking pedagogy aids in the development of creating multi-functional, high impact medical teams with strong leadership abilities that will make a sustainable impact on the local medical community. The importance of tailoring opportunities that made design thinking relevant and relatable to the participants’ disciplines was necessary for the success of this project. After all, “user-centered design means understanding what your users need, how they think, and how they behave – and incorporating that understanding into every aspect of your process” (Garrett, n.d., as cited in Yalanska, 2018, para. 24).
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Citation Information
Thurnes, Tracey T., "Design Thinking in Health Sciences: Developing Solutions-Oriented Graduates Impacting Local Medical Communities Through Innovative Leadership" (2019). Education Dissertations and Projects. 277.
https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/education_etd/277