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Students engage in interprofessional education initiative by Cindy Abole Public Relations On Jan. 20, more than 600 MUSC students will gather along with faculty and other health care professionals to learn about the advantages of an interprofessional team approach to health care. Not traditionally taught using textbooks, the event features interactive experiences among students and with the patients they will serve.   This type of interprofessional education and training is the first of its kind offered to first-year MUSC students and one of several new educational initiatives created to enhance student learning and outcomes designed to meet MUSC’s goal of providing the best education possible for the next generation of health care professionals.   The program was organized by an interprofessional group of faculty and students with full endorsement by the deans of each of MUSC’s colleges and by university administration. A core group from this committee has been busy planning and coordinating the Jan. 20 event. The project was initiated by David Garr, M.D., associate dean for Community Medicine and professor of Family Medicine.   “This initiative is meant to create a comprehensive university experience,” said Garr, who also serves as executive director for the South Carolina Area Health Education Consortium. “Academic health centers don’t traditionally create campuswide collaborative activities to enhance curricula and educational programs. Yet, today’s health care delivery system increasingly relies upon interprofessional teams to work together in the care of patients. It’s important that our institution commit to preparing future health care professionals by providing this type of training. At MUSC, this collaboration represents a new era and new educational paradigm.”   Next Friday afternoon, participating students will report and assemble in multiple classroom locations inside the Basic Science building. Each student will be asked to complete an initial survey assessing their perceptions, knowledge, and perspectives about interprofessional health care and education.   Next, the students will watch a 20-minute, campus-produced video created as an introduction for students about the role and values of health care teams. The video presentation follows a fictional patient’s journey from diagnosis to treatment and the contributions of the interprofessional team to the patient’s care.   Following the video, students will break into sub-groups of 20 participants and engage in interactions and discussions. A member of the faculty and a student from different colleges will facilitate each sub-group. The day’s event will conclude with participants completing a second survey that seeks feedback about the overall value of the four-hour program and recommendations for the future.   “We recognize the importance of our students increasing their understanding of each other’s role on a health care team while also developing their skills as team members,” said Valerie West, Ed.D., associate provost for Education and Student Life. “Other educational initiatives, such as the Presidential Scholars Program and the South Carolina Rural Interdisciplinary Training (SCRIPT) summer experience have addressed this need, but the number of students involved has always been limited. Interprofessional Day is an exciting new program that will reach 600-plus first-year students and hopefully begin their journey toward a greater interprofessional understanding.”   Addressing and committing to the concept of interprofessional education has significant benefits, according to Garr. It helps students begin to understand and value the contributions each member of the health care team can make to a patient’s care. In addition, it has the potential to enhance the quality of each student’s educational experience through interprofessional cooperation and practice.   This month’s Interprofessional Day program is consistent with the university’s goal of providing a more creative and stimulating environment that has the potential to expand interaction and collaboration across MUSC’s six colleges.   Data from the surveys completed by the students will be analyzed and their results will be shared with the Interprofessional Education Steering Committee. What Garr and other institutional leaders hope is that this experience will lay the groundwork for a formal interprofessional curriculum both at MUSC and possibly at other academic health centers. This training can open the door to new interprofessional team experiences by addressing such focus areas as health care ethics, cultural diversity, and prevention and population health.   “This program is occurring because the leaders on our campus have made it a top priority,” Garr said. “It is my hope that this inaugural event will lead to expanded interprofessional educational opportunities on our campus and across the state. If we do this well, I believe we will be laying the groundwork for a program that will make a significant contribution to future health care for the citizens of South Carolina.”   The project’s design and planning function was provided by a collaboration of university sources organized by West and the Student Life office, which involved input from MUSC students. Division of Education and Student Life’s Larry Owens headed an implementation team of staff from each of the six colleges to handle the logistics of this widescale campus event. The video was developed and produced by a faculty and staff team featuring Jerry Blackwell, DHA, associate dean for Student Affairs; Gene Merkel, Education Technology Services and Distance Education; and Heather Woolwine, Public Relations. For information, visit its Web site at http://www.musc.edu/academics/interprofessional   Friday, Jan. 13, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778, ext. 201.