Page 48 - Index

1. the opportunity for development of a more comprehensive patient history and life story when gathered within the different contexts of each profession, which aided in the development of a more comprehensive management plan;
2. more opportunities for patients to express, and providers to identify, problems and key barriers to successful self-management;
3. delivery of consistent, coordinated patient education; and,
4. the sharing of information and multi-faceted perspectives on treatment that each
profession would not have gathered, nor devised, independently.
These factors led to enhanced coordination, prioritization and modification of treatment plans as a team to optimize adherence, patient self-management, quality of care, and quality of life (Aamodt, et al., 2010). Students participating in the IDC reported that they benefited from interactions with other student professionals, gaining better knowledge of their roles. Our surveys showed the overall IDC experience increased student appreciation of the value of interprofessional patient care delivery. Students felt that the case conference was valuable— often the best part of the experience—and added to their understanding of the challenges
of living with chronic disease and needs of patients with diabetes. However, there was room for improvement in the actual format and efficiency of the afternoon sessions. Modifications regarding the presentation style, including use of a presentation template available on the Moodle IDC Resource Center, and stricter time management for each case, have addressed these concerns.
The major challenges implementing the IDC include scheduling a time when already very busy professional students and faculty from the different programs, and the clinical facilities, are all available. Conducting clinic on Saturday, also convenient for the patient population, has largely alleviated the facilities availability problem. However, Saturday clinics are not, in general, popular with faculty. The most significant improvement has been the transition to providers who supervise students as part of their faculty contracts, but on a rotating basis. This consistency and built-in flexibility in staffing has helped foster continuity and consistency in process and procedures, use of the EHRs, and a renewed commitment to the ongoing success of the IDC.
Another challenge has been maintaining patient comfort with the increase in number of prac- titioners and students in the examination room during evaluations. Faculty and students are continually reminded to be mindful of patient comfort with multiple providers, including the interpreter, in the room at the same time. The bi-lingual, bi-cultural patient Care Coordinator is paramount to the success of the IDC given our patient population. Patient no-show rates have been low due to the outreach, rapport and trust she has developed within the commu- nity and with our patients. Lastly, due to the scheduling constraints, the IDC experience, a requirement for some programs, is not required for all the professional programs but offered on a volunteer basis to students.
Future plans include offering more frequent clinics as scheduling permits, including weekdays, to accommodate more patients, and eventually provide hands-on clinical opportu- nities in interprofessional practice for all of Pacific University’s professional students.
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ASCO IPECP Toolkit
June 2020