INTERPROFESSIONAL PRACTICE & EDUCATION (IPE)
MODULE #1
Overview and Basic Principles of IPE
Name Date
Student # Program/Yr Level
In this module we will provide key definitions and principles that will guide us in identifying core
interprofessional education and competencies. Then, it will describe the timeliness of interprofessional
learning now, along with separate efforts by the School of Nursing and Allied Health Studies to move in
this direction. A concept-interprofessionality- is introduced as the idea that is foundational to the
identification of core interprofessional competency domains and the associated specific competencies.
Interprofessional practice & education has a dynamic relationship to practice needs and practice
improvements. After reading this module the students will be able to:
1. Define what is interprofessional practice and education.
2. Identify the core competencies of interprofessional collaborative practice
3. Identify the desired principles of the interprofessional competencies:
4. Discuss and define what is interprofessionality.
5. Explain the relevance of IPE to health delivery teams.
I. Definition of Terms:
A. Interprofessional education: “When students from two or more professions learn about, from
and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes” (WHO, 2010)
B. Interprofessional collaborative practice: “When multiple health workers from different
professional backgrounds work together with patients, families, carers [sic], and communities to
deliver the highest quality of care” (WHO, 2010)
C. Interprofessional teamwork: The levels of cooperation, coordination and collaboration
characterizing the relationships between professions in delivering patient-centered care
D. Interprofessional team-based care: Care delivered by intentionally created, usually relatively
small work groups in health care, who are recognized by others as well as by themselves as
having a collective identity and shared responsibility for a patient or group of patients, e.g., rapid
response team, palliative care team, primary care team, operating room team
E. Professional competencies in health care: Integrated enactment of knowledge, skills, and
values/attitudes that define the domains of work of a particular health profession applied in
specific care contexts
F. Interprofessional competencies in health care: Integrated enactment of knowledge, skills, and
values/attitudes that define working together across the professions, with other health care
workers, and with patients, along with families and communities, as appropriate to improve health
outcomes in specific care contexts
G. Interprofessional competency domain: A generally identified cluster of more specific
interprofessional competencies that are conceptually linked, and serve as theoretical constructs
(ten Cate & Scheele, 2007)
II. Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice
Competency Domain 1: Values/Ethics for Interprofessional Practice
Competency Domain 2: Roles/Responsibilities
Competency Domain 3: Interprofessional Communication
Competency Domain 4: Teams and Teamwork
III. Desired principles of the interprofessional competencies:
● Patient/family centered (hereafter termed “patient centered”)
● Community/population oriented
● Relationship focused
● Process oriented
● Linked to learning activities, educational strategies, and behavioral assessments that are
developmentally appropriate for the learner
● Able to be integrated across the learning continuum
● Sensitive to the systems context/applicable across practice settings
● Applicable across professions
● Stated in language common and meaningful across the professions
● Outcome driven
IV. Interprofessionality
“the process by which professionals reflect on and develop ways of practicing that provides an integrated
and cohesive answer to the needs of the client/family/population… [I]t involves continuous interaction and
knowledge sharing between professionals, organized to solve or explore a variety of education and care
issues all while seeking to optimize the patient’s participation… Interprofessionality requires a paradigm
shift, since interprofessional practice has unique characteristics in terms of values, codes of conduct, and
ways of working. These characteristics must be elucidated”
Interprofessionality as the field of interprofessional practice and interprofessional education: An emerging concept
The WHO Framework
highlights curricular and
educator mechanisms that
help interprofessional
education succeed, as well
as institutional support,
working culture, and
environmental elements that
drive collaborative practice.
The framework incorporates
actions that leaders and
policymakers can take to
bolster interprofessional
education and
interprofessional
collaborative practice for the improvement of health care. At the national level, positive health professions
education and health systems actions are pointed to that could synergistically drive more integrated
health workforce planning and policymaking.
Reflective Activity:
Question/s: Answer/s:
Why do we need to educate teams for the delivery
of health care?
Who should be educated to serve on health
delivery teams?
How can your program/profession work
collaboratively other health care professionals to
optimize patient care and recovery?
What are the obstacles to educating health
professionals to practice in health care delivery
teams?
