The COVID-19 crisis silver lining: interprofessional education to guide future innovation

ABSTRACT

Globally, the advent and rapid spread of the COVID-19 virus has created significant disruption to health professions education and practice, and consequently interprofessional education, leading to a model of learning and practicing where much is unknown. Key questions for this ongoing evolution emerge for the global context leading to reflections on future directions for the interprofessional education field and its role in shaping future practice models. Health professions programs around the world have made a dramatic shift to virtual learning platforms in response to closures of academic institutions and restrictions imposed on learners accessing practice settings. Telemedicine, slow to become established in many countries to date, has also revolutionized practice in the current environment. Within the state of disruption and rapid change is the awareness of a silver lining that provides an opportunity for future growth. Key topics explored in this commentary include reflection on the application of existing competency frameworks, consideration of typology of team structures, reconsideration of theoretical underpinnings, revisiting of core dimensions of education, adaptation of interprofessional education activities, and the role in the future pandemic planning. As an international community of educators and researchers, the authors consider current observations relevant to interprofessional education and practice contexts and suggest a response from scholarship voices across the globe. The current pandemic offers a unique opportunity for educators, practitioners, and researchers to retain what has served interprofessional education and practice well in the past, break from what has not worked as well, and begin to imagine the new.

KEYWORD:

• Interprofessional education
• impact of virtual IPE
• evolving pedagogic approaches
• future innovation

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Authors contributions

SL, HK, and AX conceived the idea for the article. SL led the development of the article, and SL with AX developed the first draft. All the authors contributed with critical revisions and approved the final draft.

Notes

1. Teamworks! IPE Learning Activity is adapted from Teamworks! Game, © George Brown College, University Health Network and Ryerson University. Funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sylvia Langlois

Sylvia Langlois is the Faculty Lead-IPE Curriculum and Scholarship at the Centre for Interprofessional Education and an Associate Professor, Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. Her work addresses the development of interprofessional collaborative competencies, including pedagogic approaches, assessment, and evaluation of curricula.

Andreas Xyrichis

Dr. Andreas Xyrichis is a Board Member of CAIPE, Steering Committee member of the King's College London Centre for Team-based Practice & Learning in Health Care, and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Interprofessional Care. His work focuses on strengthening health service delivery and organisation worldwide through interprofessional education and team-based practice initiatives.

Brittany J. Daulton

Dr. Brittany Daulton is the Director of Curriculum Development and Research at the Indiana University Interprofessional Practice and Education Center. Her work is largely focused on higher education assessment and effectiveness of educational interventions.

John Gilbert

Dr. John H.V. Gilbert is Professor Emeritus, College of Health Disciplines, University of British Columbia. He is a Senor Scholar, WHO Collaborating Centre on Health Workforce Planning and Research, Dalhousie University. He holds the DR. TMA Pai Endowment Chair in Interprofessional Education & Practice, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India, and is an Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Health, University of Technology, Sydney. He is Founding Chair, the Canadian Interprofessional Health Collaborative.

Kelly Lackie

Dr. Kelly Lackie is Associate Director of Simulation-based Education & Interprofessional Education and Assisstant Professor, School of Nursing, Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia, Canada. Dr. Lackie's research is situated in the disciple of IPECP. Dr Lackie co-leads the Knowledge Exchange Working Group of IPR.Global.

Dean Lising

Dean Lising is the Team-Based Practice and Education Lead at the Centre for Interprofessional Education, University of Toronto and University Health Network, and a Lecturer in the Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. He leads team-based care, professional and faculty development, IPE student curriculum programs a the University of Toronto and Toronto Academic Health Science Network.

Kathleen M. MacMillan

Kathleen M. MacMillan is a Medical Student at Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick (Dalhousie University) and works part-time as a Clinical Pharmacist at the Miramichi Regional Hospital. Kathleen is a well-known interprofessional student leader, serving as the National Lead of Interprofessional Education for the Canadian Federation of Medical Students and as Student Representative for Interprofessional Research.Global.

Ghaidaa Najjar

Ghaidaa Najjar is a IPE Post-Doc Research Fellow with the  Centre for Interprofessional Education, University of Michigan.

Andrea L. Pfeifle

Andrea  L. Pfeifle is Associate Vice Chancellor for Interprofessional Practice and Education and Professor of Family Medicine at the Ohio State University and Wexner Medical Center. She is also Chair of the American Interprofessional Health Collaborative and Chair of the National Academies of Practice Physical Therapy Academy. Her work focuses on interprofessional education to prepare the current and future work force for collaboration across professions, disciplines, and sectors to improve health and health care for individuals, populations, and communities.

Hossein Khalili

Dr. Hossein Khalili is a leader in the field of interprofessional education and collaborative practice. He serves as the Director of the University of Wisconsin Center of Interprofessional Practice and Education in US, and Adjunct Research Professor at Western University, Canada, the Co-Founding Lead of the InterprofessionalResearch.Global, a Member of Interprofessional.Global Leadership Team, and a Board Member of Canadian Interprofessional Health Collaborative.