Virtual Teaming in the Interprofessional Teaching Clinic - Lessons Learned

The Interprofessional Teaching Clinic is a well-established clinical setting where students from Dietetics, Medicine, Nursing, OT, Pharmacy, PT, Psychology and Social Work learn interprofessional teaming skills. Usually these students are co-located in a conference room, but with the COVID-19 pandemic social distancing and space limitations made this impossible. We developed a teaming protocol to allow students to continue to work together virtually.
Both patients and students needed an internet-capable device to access Zoom. Rather than a physical location, students and preceptors started in a Zoom session. Student teams were assigned into a breakout room where they could huddle and plan each visit. If the patients were physically in the clinic, an iPad with the team was carried into the room. If it was a telehealth visit, each team member would be sent the link to enter the telehealth encounter. Students were required to use headphones to protect patient privacy and were asked to introduce each team member as well as to include their profession on their label.
To provide the most patient-centered care, the team explored concerns about what could be lost in a virtual visit and explained that while virtual, patients would still have access to the same professions. Once they had interviewed the patient, the team huddled and then discussed the plan with preceptors prior to returning to the patient room to complete the visit.
We also held a short debriefing after clinic to discuss how COVID-19 changed the dynamic and flow of the visit, as well as challenges/benefits of seeing patients in their own space. The virtual setting let preceptors directly observe patient encounters, which allowed for more detailed feedback. While it was a challenge, we believe that this setting provided value to both patients and learners as telehealth will persist as a means of patient care.