Interprofessional education

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine is dedicated to interprofessional education (IPE).The school was instrumental in stimulating interprofessional education in northeast Pennsylvania and has prioritized IPE as a core component of the Total Health Curriculum, designed to prepare our medical students for the interprofessional, team-based medical environment of the real healthcare world.

IPE in our curriculum

IPE is integrated throughout our curriculum, beginning in year 1 of the MD program. Medical students interact with nursing and pharmacy students to develop a shared understanding of our roles and responsibilities of interprofessional team members using small and large group activities. The same group of learners is reconvened in year 2 of the MD program to discuss and practice interprofessional communication skills using the TeamSTEPPS model. As described by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, “TeamSTEPPS is an evidence-based set of teamwork tools, aimed at optimizing patient outcomes by improving communication and teamwork skills among healthcare teams, including patients and family caregivers.” 

Students apply the foundational skills in interprofessional communication during subsequent phases of the MD program during clinical clerkships and advanced electives.