An Online Interprofessional Team-Based Experience Simulating Person-Centered Care Planning

Abstract :

Introduction: Interprofessional team-based training (IPTT) can contribute to building a collaborative, practice-ready healthcare workforce. Designed by educators from diverse professions, our IPTT program comprises a 1.5hr experience, centered on team-based care planning to improve patient health in the community. IPTT provides a clinically relevant case-based simulation for multiple professions, introducing students to four interprofessional (IP) competency domains, addressing effective IP communication and teamwork, increasing understanding of roles and responsibilities, demonstrating shared values, and professional ethics.

Methods: Students from nursing (BSN), medicine, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, laboratory sciences, social work and public health are placed in IP groups of 15-20. Students are prebriefed, including instructions for an elevator pitch to introduce their profession to their team. Groups are divided into smaller teams (4-5) to focus on a simulated patient case designed to address social determinants of health. Trained facilitators use a video (standardized patient interview) and guide. Debriefing is based on PEARLS plus-delta method exploring professional roles, care planning, and communicating with students from other professions.

Outcomes: IPTT currently serves over 900 students annually. COVID-19 forced IPTT faculty to swiftly pivot to online delivery via Zoom, providing an opportunity for nursing students, and other health professions, to obtain clinically focused IP learning experiences. Student and facilitator evaluations revealed significant advantages in online delivery: scheduling flexibility, learner convenience, smaller groups, expanded professions, and nursing student engagement across learner levels. The ability to run IPTT ‘on-demand’ balanced initial logistical challenges such as re-training facilitators and adapting to online engagement strategies.