Interprofessional Communication

Interprofessional Communication

This blended online & synchronous course is based on the interprofessional competencies in the CIHC National Interprofessional Competency Framework (CIHC, 2010) & the IPEC Interprofessional Collaborative Practice Competency Domains (IPEC, 2016). The focus is help student to improve their communication skills in a Canadian healthcare context. The activities support cultural and language development enabling students to practice interacting professionally, respectfully and effectively with patients and other healthcare professionals.

This course has 3 goals. They are:

• help prepare internationally educated healthcare professionals for patient-centered team-based care in Canada
• communicate empathetically, respectfully and professionally with healthcare professionals
• engage students from various healthcare professions in interactive learning with each other to practice the interprofessional communication skills covered in this course

This course will focus on the culture and language elements of four core competency domains: values and ethics, roles and responsibilities, teams and teamwork, interprofessional communication, plus an additional lesson on conflict management.

1. Values and Ethics
2. Role and Responsibilities
3. Teams and Teamwork
4. Interprofessional Communication
5. Conflict Management

The course gives opportunities to learn and practice the skills, techniques and language related to these five interprofessional competency domains with other healthcare professionals in the class.

Values and Ethics

Focuses on patient-centered care and the respect for the diversity, validity and importance of each unique patient, team member and profession, as well as how these values can affect health outcomes.

Roles and Responsibilities

Focuses on understanding and communicating your own role, responsibilities and expertise, as well as the unique role of each profession / team member and how they may overlap.

Teams and Teamwork

Focuses on the qualities of effective teamwork, as well as the language and strategies needed to negotiate responsibilities and contribute to the creation and delivery of a healthcare plan

Interprofessional Communication

Focuses on the cultural and language aspects of communication when working as part of a healthcare team, such as listening, expressing ideas and giving / receiving feedback.

Conflict Resolution

Focuses on the issues and cultural factors that can lead to conflict on a team, as well as the strategies and language to prevent and/or deal with it.

There are 5 online discussions, 7 quizzes and 5 assignments which are all role-played in teams during class. The cases are used to practice the content in the unit and each case addresses the specific concerns of a diverse population in Nova Scotia.