Academic Health Centers have three main missions:
- Clinical service
- Education
- Research
Interprofessional collaboration across these three missions enhances the quality and impact of projects in all three domains. Yet Interprofessional Education efforts are largely limited to the student IPE curriculum that integrates student learning across the institution, leading many faculty to conclude that IPE is only for faculty involved in educational pursuits. A comprehensive approach to faculty development that incorporates a broader vision of interprofessional collaboration is critical for institutional acceptance and engagement in IPE.
The UAMS Office of IPE offers a foundational awareness seminar (101: Interprofessional Education: Theory and UAMS Application) live (Check our Facebook page for events) or via online module offered to all faculty across all colleges. This seminar heightens the need for interprofessional collaboration across the three missions and highlights the shared core competency domains that underlie team science, collaborative practice, and interprofessional education efforts.
After completing the 101, additional faculty development events were designed to address the development of those core skill domains within each mission.
The LEGOS monthly noontime lecture series presents didactics and interprofessional active learning elements which highlight one or more of the core competency domains that underlie faculty collaborations across the three missions (understanding roles/responsibilities of all team members, communication skills, developing a shared culture and set of values, and optimizing team process). Thus, separate collaborative practice, team science, and interprofessional facilitator skill-building seminars are available.