All Change is Local: Pilot Results from a University-wide Peer-to-Peer Faculty and Staff Development Program
Background: The Quality Enhancement Plan at UT Health San Antonio, Linking Interprofessional Networks for Collaboration (LINC), serves as the institutional blueprint for transforming campus-wide interprofessional education (IPE). A key component of this plan includes cultivating knowledge and skills in faculty and staff to increase IPE opportunities for learners. The LINC Faculty and Staff Development Program was launched in Fall 2020 to achieve this goal.
Design/Methodology: This program included three synchronous online workshops. The first workshop provided a broad overview of IPE and interprofessional practice, including definitions/types of IPE, linkages between IPE and accreditation standards/guidelines, and the university’s approach to advancing IPE through LINC. After this introduction, participants selected from three distinct tracks to complete the program, each consisting of two workshops: Didactic IPE (i.e., formal classroom- or simulation-based curricula), Clinical IPE (i.e., formal clinical learning environment-based curricula), or Co-Curricular IPE (i.e., experiences outside formal curricula). Track leaders developed a unified set of learning objectives to ensure cohesion with program goals, yet diversified track-specific content to address unique characteristics associated with each IPE type.
Results: Fifty-eight individuals attended the introductory workshop and 42 (72%) enrolled in one or more tracks: 14 Didactic IPE; 10 Clinical IPE; and 23 Co-Curricular IPE. Faculty/staff from all 5 schools at UT Health San Antonio participated. Post-track evaluations captured quantitative and qualitative feedback from 49% (23/47) of track participants. Improved understanding of IPE (18/23, 78%) garnered the most “strongly agree” ratings, while understanding connections between IPE and health professions accreditation (11/23, 48%) garnered the fewest “strongly agree” ratings. 22 (96%) participants reported they would recommend the program to colleagues, 13 (57%) that they intended to develop and implement an IPE activity within the next year, and 6 (26%) that they intended to submit a proposal to the LINC Seed Grant Program, another LINC effort to increase IPE on campus.
Conclusion: The LINC Faculty and Staff Development Program was an important first step toward disseminating information about IPE, highlighting local IPE resources, and establishing a training infrastructure for faculty and staff interested in developing their IPE knowledge and skills.
Reflections/Lessons Learned/Implications: A sustained effort is needed to address IPE knowledge and skill development for UT Health San Antonio faculty and staff. Findings are being used to guide the creation of a permanent LINC Faculty and Staff Development Initiative that will provide dedicated training and formalized mentorship for faculty and staff interested in IPE planning, implementation, and assessment/evaluation.
