Interdisciplinary Education/Collaborative Practice
According to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Core Competencies for all Health Professionals (2003), it is imperative that all health professionals are educated to deliver patient-centered care as interdisciplinary team members (AACN, 2011; Billings & Halstead, 2012). The term “interdisciplinary” represents a collaborative synthesis of disciplinary knowledge and methods (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015). This does not diminish individual professions (Billings & Halstead, 2012), but rather provides health care professionals with a collaborative partnership based on shared decision making regarding patients’ health issues (Orchard, Curran, & Kabene, 2005). Interprofessional Education (IPE) involves students from two or more disciplines learning about, from, and with each other in a collaborative manner in order to improve health outcomes (World Health Organization, 2013). Interprofessional education (IPE) has been identified as a key mechanism to prepare students to function effectively as part of healthcare teams (Owen et al., 2012; Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015). Collaborative Practice (CP) involves a partnership between a team of health care professionals and the client in a collaborative approach towards shared-decision making around the clients’ health issues (Orchard et al., 2005).
There are numerous competencies related to IPE, including values and ethics for interprofessional practice, roles and responsibilities, interprofessional communication, and teamwork (AACN, 2011). Values and ethics for interprofessional practice are established through ethical decision-making competencies (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015). Roles and responsibilities are established through students’ knowledge of their own roles and expertise, confidence in their abilities, commitment to values and ethics of their own profession, and knowledge of their own disciplinary practice standards, as well as establishing a clear understanding of other healthcare professions. (Orchard et al., 2005). Interprofessional communication involves development of healthcare professionals’ communication skills with the goal of understanding each other’s language, and learning to coordinate their actions as a team (Newhouse & Spring, 2010). Teamwork is required in order to bring healthcare professions together in a collaborative effort to improve patient care outcomes (Orchard et al., 2005; Newhouse & Spring, 2010). Some strategies for integrating IPE within nursing curriculum involves establishing interdisciplinary problem-based learning, patient-focused case studies, and acquisition of clinical skills in practice/simulations with the ultimate goal of improving interprofessional communication and collaboration, patient care and safety, and organizational functioning (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015).
There are numerous competencies related to IPE, including values and ethics for interprofessional practice, roles and responsibilities, interprofessional communication, and teamwork (AACN, 2011). Values and ethics for interprofessional practice are established through ethical decision-making competencies (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015). Roles and responsibilities are established through students’ knowledge of their own roles and expertise, confidence in their abilities, commitment to values and ethics of their own profession, and knowledge of their own disciplinary practice standards, as well as establishing a clear understanding of other healthcare professions. (Orchard et al., 2005). Interprofessional communication involves development of healthcare professionals’ communication skills with the goal of understanding each other’s language, and learning to coordinate their actions as a team (Newhouse & Spring, 2010). Teamwork is required in order to bring healthcare professions together in a collaborative effort to improve patient care outcomes (Orchard et al., 2005; Newhouse & Spring, 2010). Some strategies for integrating IPE within nursing curriculum involves establishing interdisciplinary problem-based learning, patient-focused case studies, and acquisition of clinical skills in practice/simulations with the ultimate goal of improving interprofessional communication and collaboration, patient care and safety, and organizational functioning (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015).
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Jennifer Austin
(March 27, 2015)
(March 27, 2015)