More schools opening doors to interprofessional education

Interprofessional education is becoming widespread at the nation's universities—meaning students of different health professions learn together and prepare for future collaboration—according to a report in Academic Medicine.

In a survey meant to establish a baseline for future measurement, 85% of respondents said some form of IPE was in place for school courses and 80.3% said it existed in clinical rotations or internships. (There were 346 invitations e-mailed in September 2010 to participate in the online survey. It was completed by 127 individuals at 68 institutions.)

Offering students these opportunities requires overcoming an array of barriers, such as limited funding, lack of institutional leadership, academic calendar variables and faculty attitudes, according to a 2010 study cited in the Academic Medicine report. The concept has been discussed as early as 1953 and has been promoted by the Institute of Medicine.

The authors acknowledged that officials at institutions where IPE is underway were more likely to respond to their survey. But they also expressed confidence that the efforts will continue to grow as efforts such as the HHS Health Resources and Services Administration's Coordinating Center for Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice at the University of Minnesota develop and research new programs.

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