The School of Health Care Professions (SHCP) launched its first-ever Interprofessional Education (IPE) event on September 7-8, 2023 at the Nursing Arts Laboratory, Robert Hoeppener Building, USC Talamban Campus, Cebu City.

The two-day event aimed at fostering interdisciplinary communication and collaboration among the three departments under SHCP, namely Nursing, Nutrition and Dietetics, and Pharmacy. 

During the IPE, students and faculty members from the three departments underwent a simulated eight-hour hospital shift from patient admission, course in the wards, until discharge. There was also a simulation of different patient cases allowing students to create assessments and identify interventions that can be applied to other healthcare fields. 

Interprofessional education refers to the process by which a group of students from varying disciplines learn together during certain periods of their education. 

The World Health Organization has firmly placed interprofessional education on the global health agenda, where it is recognized as a necessary component of every health professional’s education. 

As a teaching-learning strategy, IPE allows the sharing and integration of knowledge to create a more holistic approach to care for the patient. 

SHCP is now looking at conducting the event annually after it gained positive feedback from both students and faculty members. As planned, the IPE will be conducted before the start of the actual field exposure for students to enable them to become more familiar with the processes and set-up of an actual hospital environment. 

Dean Gerard Lee L. See, Ph.D. organized the event along with the IPE Core Team comprised of faculty members of the three departments, namely Jacqueline T. Pableo, M.A.N., and Joy Barby L. Alota, M.A.N. (Department of Nursing), Micah M. Areja, R.Ph. (Department of Pharmacy), Raphalella Therese C. Lavisores, and Rey Francis M. Erana (Department of Nutrition and Dietetics).