Interprofessional education gaining momentum at ATSU

Within the culture of ATSU, the concept of interprofessional education (IPE) has been rapidly gaining momentum. IPE’s goal is to foster a collaborative healthcare team by encouraging students to learn with, from, and about students of other health disciplines. Institutionalization of IPE within the ATSU experience requires champions at all levels of the university, including within the student body.

The student IPE movement was initiated by a simple conversation. Marietta Tartaglia, Arizona School of Health Sciences, OT ’12, reached out to the ATSU Board of Trustees Chair Clyde Evans, Ph.D., to discuss the importance of IPE. As a result of the conversation, the Arizona Student Government Association (AZ-SGA) designated an IPE chair (Adam Bennett, D2) to formally recognize the importance of collaborative learning experiences. IPE has continued to percolate through the student body and recently has been formally recognized as a mission of the University Student Association (USA), a student government tasked with representing both the Arizona and Missouri campuses. From one student’s desire to foster a stronger ATSU community, a variety of opportunities have emerged.

The Clarion Case Competition

The Clarion Competition, an annual national event sponsored by the University of Minnesota, requires interprofessional teams of four students to conduct a root-cause analysis of a sentinel health event. In a joint effort with ATSU Senior Vice President — Academic Affairs, Dr. Douglas Wood, the AZ-SGA and USA are sponsoring an ATSU team to compete in the 2012 Clarion competition. Elizabeth Hall, PA  ’12; Brandi Molina, D3; Kelli Allegro, PT ’13; and Bhargav Chandrashekar, OMS II (KCOM), will represent ATSU this April in Minneapolis.

The Interprofessional Education Activities Fund

To empower student efforts for IPE and recognize an individual integral to national IPE efforts, the AZ-SGA created the Dr. Clyde Evans Interprofessional Education Activities Fund. This fund allocates money to a variety of grassroots student IPE endeavors.

USA Lecture Series

The USA Lecture Series’ purpose is to expose students to topics of interest to all health professions. The lectures will be alternately hosted on one ATSU campus and interactively broadcast to the other campus; off-campus students will also be able to view the lecture.

Student Council on Interprofessional Education

Most recently, the AZ-SGA created the Student Council on Interprofessional Education (SCIPE). SCIPE is composed of approximately 20 students representing health programs on the Arizona campus.

Not long ago, interprofessional education may have been a term unknown by a majority of ATSU. Through a variety of efforts, often initiated and led by students, the concept of IPE has become part of everyday vernacular. Many of these early efforts focused on raising awareness of IPE and encouraging students to become involved in its integration. The creation of new organizations, availability of student funds, and participation in national events are bringing together students from all programs to learn about healthcare in a setting that promotes collaboration and communication.