IPE Wednesdays

Learning and Fun Alike

During the winter semester, faculty hosted seven workshops where students could earn Co-Curricular Record (CCR) credits. The sessions addressed a wide range of topics, such as interprofessional teamwork, conflict management, safe client transfer methods, and motivational interviewing to name a few.

Rocio Montoya-Campos, a student from the Occupational Therapist Assistant & Physiotherapist Assistant program, reflected on her experience at the interprofessional team functioning workshop after students were divided into groups and given a task to work on together. “We didn’t really know each other or what the ultimate goal was from the activity, we were kind of just thrown together and given the task,” Montoya-Campos said. “We all just sat there and did our own thing,” she said.

It was during the debriefing discussion after the activity where Montoya-Campos gained greater insights about working with others. Montoya-Campos said she was surprised because she thought she was already familiar with the concept of teamwork. “I honestly thought I worked well in a team, but through the workshop, I realized what my faults were and how to apply them in real-time,” she said.

Montoya-Campos appreciated the open nature of the workshops. “I never felt like I was being talked-at, it was always a conversation,” she said.

Near the end of the sessions, students got to try the task again, applying what they learned. Montoya-Campos said her group was able to work more effectively. “It was understanding everyone’s roles and clarifying your own role so that everyone can work off their strengths,” she said. Along with their ability to work together, their performance on the task also improved!

A few weeks later, another group of FHSW students explored client transfers. After attending the workshop, Jay Rhussrosal, a student in the Fitness and Health Promotion program, said he realized that safe client transfers involved much more than simply moving a person from point A to point B.

“I thought client transfer was going from one place to another, and whoever was doing the transfer was just lifting them up on to wherever they needed to go,” he said. “It [the workshop] taught me more about safety, and what you should and shouldn’t be doing.”

Student teams collaborated on cases, sharing their own profession’s perspective while working together. They practiced safe transfer techniques such as the transition from a chair to a bed, chair to a table, and table to a chair. Other students had the same experience as Rhussrosal, having their preconceived notions challenged by the activities of the workshop.

Meeting new colleagues from different programs was the best part of the workshop for Rhussrosal. “I'm just used to seeing everyone in my program so it’s nice they [encouraged] us to work with different programs as well,” he said.

“Although you come from different backgrounds, you can still work together and help - which is what I want to do in life - help other people and make them feel like they’re in safe hands,” Rhussrosal said.

Looking Towards the Future

IPE Wednesdays provided a space for professionals and students to inspire each other.

Having opportunities for professionals to learn from one another is what will shift health and wellness care in a positive direction, according to Lauren Riley, Associate Dean for the IAH cluster. “It’s about knowing that we’re a community of healthcare providers and that we can rely on each other to better treat our clients,” she said.

Wilkinson added “FHSW graduates who have participated in IPE will be ready for a changed model of care; they will be the leaders of system change to a more collaborative way of working.”

In addition to giving students the ability to interact and practice skills together, a secondary purpose of the workshops was to assess their potential to integrate into the curriculum in the future.

“We wanted to test run the curriculum with a group of students to get their feedback,” Wilkinson said. “I was gratified by their enthusiasm for the workshops, students were asking ‘Why isn’t everyone in my program doing this!?’” she added.

The faculty listened to the learners call to action; faculty from IAH and the Exercise & Nutritional Sciences (ENS) clusters have already begun planning for next Fall which will result in all students from these eleven programs participating in two IPE workshops during their first-year classes. In addition, IPE Wednesdays will continue, offering more drop-in workshops to all FHSW students.

IPE Wednesdays were a true FHSW team effort

Alongside Wilkinson, Professors Susan Bessonette (Massage Therapy), Anna Dix (Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner), Renny Wheable (Occupational Therapist Assistant & Physiotherapist Assistant program), Colin MacRae (Systems Navigator), Angela Wallace (Fitness & Health Promotion, and Nutrition & Healthy Lifestyle Promotion) and Lauren Riley (Associate Dean, Integrative and Allied Health Cluster) developed the IPE Wednesday's activities. Genevieve Mailloux (Massage Therapy) oversaw the planning and supported curriculum development. Kerchell William had the original idea and assisted with its implementation. FHSW faculty Christine Herbert (Pharmacy Technician) and William Hossack (Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner) and University of Toronto Pharmacy students Yameen Ingar and Namrataa Shaw co-facilitated the learning activities.

Occupational Therapist Assistant & Physiotherapist Assistant student, Rocio Montoya-Campos (centre) and a group of FHSW students after learning more about how to use each other's strengths to work better as a team.

Photo Credit: Sarah Wilkinson

Renny Wheable demonstrating safe client transfers with Student Jay Rhussrosal.

Photo Credit: Maria Kestane

Massage Therapy student Sapna Patel practicing techniques to safely transfer clients to and from their seat.

Photo Credit: Maria Kestane