Resource Center

The challenges facing health care are well known. They include an ageing population, increasing expectations, and shrinking budgets. GPs remain key in the provision of primary care in the current model and report that they are failing to cope with rising demand. Increasing concern that the 10-minute GP appointment is obsolete in the face of increasing comorbidity adds to these pressures.

Interprofessional learning (IPL) is valuable in preparing health care students to work collaboratively in teams, with patients’ needs at the core. Patient-centredness is the impetus for communication and collaboration in health care. Debate continues on when it is best to develop positive student attitudes towards these aspects of care. Should IPL commence early before attitudes to patients, professional stereotypes and identity are formed, or later for advanced learners with greater experience of their roles and responsibility in health care?

Much has been said about the evolving role of the medical librarian in recent years. Forces driving this evolution have included a challenging economic environment, dramatic changes in higher education and health care, emerging technologies, workflow and process changes to meet shifting constituent demands, and the need to keep the profession relevant. Budget cuts are forcing hospital libraries to provide new services with limited resources.

Problem: The morbidity and mortality (M&M) conference is a vital event that can affect medical education, quality improvement, and peer review in academic departments. Historically, M&M conferences have emphasized cases that highlight diagnostic uncertainty or complex management conundrums. In this report, the authors describe the development, pilot, and refinement of a systems-based M&M conference model that combines the educational and clinical missions of improving quality and patient safety in the University of Colorado Department of Medicine.

This informed reflection, from the intersection of health professions education and clinical practice, takes stock of the state of the field of interprofessional education (IPE) and collaborative practice (CP) (together IPECP) by answering the following three questions: (1) As a field of study, where is IPECP? (2) As a research enterprise, what are the current analytical gaps? (3) Scientifically, what needs to be done going forward?

The value of interprofessional collaborative practice is increasingly recognized, so national competencies have been developed in the United States to facilitate the delivery of interprofessional education (IPE) within the academic curriculum. This report links the future of our health and education systems to the transformative promise of a “collaborative practice-ready health workforce.”

The purpose of this study was to explore potential baseline physical examination and demographic predictors of clinical outcomes in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. This study provides preliminary evidence supporting an association between certain baseline characteristics and nonsurgical clinical outcomes in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis.

This article was co-authored by Joel Stevans, PhD, DC, a member of the University of Pittsburgh Nexus Innovation Network projects: 

As the United States population ages and chronic conditions increase, health care providers are faced with treating complex wounds. The American Diabetes Association reported that in 2012 9.3% of the US population had diabetes, 2.5 million patients developed pressure ulcers in US hospitals, and venous status affects 500,000 to 600,000 people in the US annually. Each chronic condition involves wound care and can require extensive treatments such as debridement, antimicrobial therapy, and multiple wound dressings.

It has been previously demonstrated that interactions within interprofessional teams are characterised by effective communication, shared decision-making, and knowledge sharing. This article outlines aspects of an action research study examining the emergence of these characteristics within change management teams made up of nurses, general practitioners, physiotherapists, care assistants, a health and safety officer, and a client at two residential care facilities for older people in Ireland.

Background

Specialised diabetes teams, specifically certified nurse and dietitian diabetes educator teams, are being integrated part-time into primary care to provide better care and support for Canadians living with diabetes.