Sharing experiential knowledge: Focus on the contribution of patient partners in nursing education
Objective: This paper aims to identify the main scientific literature on patient involvement in the education of health professionals. Methods: A literature review with keywords “”patient partner” OR “service user” AND “education”” in the CINAHL database identified 26 articles related to the involvement of patient partners in the training and education of health professionals. Results: The presence of patient partners is positively assessed. Teachers would be able to humanize and to nuance theoretical concepts by presenting people living with a mental health problem. Students have new skills, change their attitude positively by being more aware of the factors of stigmatization in mental health and their perspective on the patient would broaden by taking in consideration the health in its entirety. Finally, patient partners, by their unveiling, would feel the therapeutic effects, a sense of pride to be recognized as peers and would exercise a civic contribution by participating in the training of health professionals. However, the literature does not allow these assertions to be evidence-based. Conclusion: Some challenges remain for genuine involvement of patients beginning with their integration at every levels of development in training and education programs and a better balance between scientific knowledge and experiential knowledge.