The CAIPER Blog
Five Lessons on IPE During a Global Pandemic
April 27, 2020
By Joy Doll
As we continue our Teaming at a Distance series to share practical ways to work as virtual teams and to teach teamwork and collaboration at a distance, guest author Joy Doll shares her own lessons learned on IPE during these changing times. Read more about Doll’s lessons and impact in our next blog, where author Jody Thompson reflects on the recent webinar Joy Doll gave at the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education.
I was getting ready to go to bed during a visit to my parents in Chattanooga, Tennessee on a Monday night. It was Spring Break and myself along with my kiddos were taking a break from our usual routine. I always check my email before I go to bed to clear out anything before the next morning. I noticed an email from our University President. He was seeking guidance on if we should postpone or cancel a significant interprofessional event for the homeless that Creighton has hosted for 12 years due to the forming risk of COVID-19.
This community interprofessional event annually serves 500 individuals who are homeless and provides interprofessional opportunities for almost 200 students. I referred him to an infectious disease physician I trust and texted her for advice. She replied asking for more details of the event and said she would confirm with the state about large gatherings. The next morning, she advised we cancelled the event. It was then I realized: we need a contingency plan for all our interprofessional events. I contacted the team to make the focus of our weekly team meeting on contingency planning.
Our team immediately jumped into action analyzing which activities could still occur, which needed postponed and a communication plan for all our stakeholders. Since we had learned that the best laid plans are easily disrupted, we had already developed and planned what we lovingly called the “last ditch IPE activity.” It was an activity built for the scenario of a student or two who did not meet requirements, because as you know, life happens. This “last ditch activity” was built to be online, synchronous and flexible. And, boy, did life happen. In less than a week, the university went from us all reporting and business as usual to all online and teleworking. Here is what I learned during this time about our team and about IPE:
Lessons Learned
1. Diversity is critical.
Diverse perspectives are needed in times of challenge to innovate, prepare and succeed in meeting needs. We need interprofessional teams more than ever to bring a variety of perspectives to challenge status quo and be flexible in times of change. This is critical on the front lines of health care and in educational delivery.
2. Lead with the big picture.
Our team planned from the beginning that most activities would be impacted. With this perspective, we could focus our efforts on a contingency plan and not be distracted by all the nuances. Therefore, our plan was consistent and clear from the beginning.
3. Seek out experts.
No team has all the expertise. Ask others. We sought out advice from those on the front lines about what was appropriate and adjusted.
4. Focus on what you can accomplish.
We sent communication to students without urgent IPE needs encouraging them to find activities in the Summer and Fall. Then we let students with urgent requirements to sign up for the activities we do have available. This helped us manage the workload in the crisis time. We are contingency planning for summer as I write this.
5. Empathy is critical.
No one has been through this before. Everyone’s lives are in upheaval. EVERYONE. Recognizing that is critical. Leaders and decision makers are doing their best in an unprecedented time. As I write this, my 4-year-old son busted in here completely naked to say hi. We all need a little grace right now. Give it to yourself and give it to others.
I am always open for a dialogue or to connect. No one has all the answers. We need each other and we are better together.
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Teaming at a Distance features guest posts with stories from the field. If you would like to contribute, please email your thoughts and ideas to caiper@asu.edu.
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