Andrea Thinnes, OTD, OTR/L
Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy
Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions
Andrea Thinnes is an assistant professor in the occupational therapy (OT) department and coordinator of the Occupational Therapy Gerontology Fellowship at Creighton University. She serves as Co-Director of Faculty Development in the Center for Interprofessional Practice Education and Research (CIPER). Her teaching responsibilities consist of courses focused on older adults, mental health, spirituality in occupational therapy practice, and end of life care. Her scholarly work focuses on the development of empathy in OT students towards working with individuals with a mental illness, interprofessional education experience development for health professions students and faculty.

Presenting at the Nexus Summit:

Background: As our University establishes a presence in multiple geographic locations, there is an urgent need to foster the development of faculty prepared to design interprofessional student learning experiences and engage in interprofessional research and scholarship. To meet this need, the Center for Interprofessional Practice Education and Research (CIPER) developed the Associates and Scholars Program. The purpose of this two-year program is to develop IPE Champions who will work to advance CIPER's mission, vision, and strategic plan. The two-year Associates and Scholars Program makes…