Teachable Moments: How to foster collaboration in your students

Interprofessional education (IPE) helps students function as part of the health-care team when they graduate. While Sunnybrook offers formal IPE opportunities for students, there are lots of simple things teachers can do on a daily basis to better prepare students to work in an interdisciplinary team. Elizabeth McLaney, Sunnybrook's director of interprofessional education, offers some practical tips to help teachers promote interprofessional learning and teamwork:

1.    Talk about why teamwork matters - Help students understand the positive impacts of interprofessional collaboration on patient care. Make the link between working well as a team and delivering safe, high-quality, efficient and effective care.

2.    Encourage introductions - Make sure students are introduced to the core team (team members who are physically present where the team does most of their work) as well as the extended team (professions who come and go from different units). Introduce them to the administrative staff as well the environmental services and portering staff who play a key role in patient care and team communication.

3.    Support role clarity - Help students understand the roles of different team members. Give them to time to shadow colleagues from different professions.

4.    Avoid or explain acronyms & jargon - Each profession has its own jargon and acronyms, which can lead to confusion. A good rule of thumb is to avoid them. You can also be a role model by asking for an explanation when you hear an acronym.

5.    Have learners engage in active partnerships with patient & families - Help students see patients and families as being active members of the team. Have students find out their preferences, what matters most to them and involve them in care planning.

6.    Highlight opportunities for shared decision making & team communication - Include students in activities like team rounds, bullet rounds, family meetings and handover communication.

7.    Be a role model for conflict resolution - Even if it's as simple as using the OBEFA model (Opening Statement, Behaviour, Effect, Feelings, Action) it will give learners a way to approach issues. For example: "I have an issue I wanted to talk with you about. When you do X the consequences for me are Y. This makes me feel Z. I'd like to explore ways we can resolve this issue together."