U-M Interprofessional Education community inspired during IPE in Action event

When more than 1,200 students and faculty from 10 U-M health science schools gathered for IPE in Action at Crisler Center on Oct. 16, you could have heard a pin drop during the keynote address. That’s because Tony Denton, senior vice president and chief operating officer of the U-M Health System, articulated the importance of collaboration to health outcomes with expertise and enthusiasm.

“I believe interprofessional collaboration means respecting each other’s talents and competencies, to synergize and strengthen the knowledge, power and service capability of the team,” he said. “You will have to solve issues together… Remember WE, not me. US, not you. OUR, not your.”

The Regional Alliance for Healthy Schools (RAHS) then presented the case of a young person with multiple physical and psycho-social challenges. Students read the details of the case and discussed interrelated approaches for treatments. RAHS providers then explained how their integrated “wraparound care” had helped the client get back on track with support for dealing with his chronic conditions, medications (and interactions), diet, oral health, exercise, self-confidence and life goals.

For all student participants, IPE in Action was immediately preceded by an online module that includes videos, assignments and interprofessional discussion boards for students on all three U-M campuses. This multi-part foundational program set the groundwork for more intense  interprofessional experiences, which allow students to dive deeply into IPE competencies in a safe environment before having to practice them in their rotations.

U-M’s IPE initiative “focuses on several core competencies that include values and ethics, roles and responsibilities, communication, teamwork and intercultural intelligence,” said Vani Patterson, assistant director of the Michigan Center for IPE. “It also provides students with diverse learning opportunities outside of the traditional semester-based courses, like clinical and field experiences, service learning projects, simulations and online modules.”

Website: https://interprofessional.umich.edu/