Pathway to assessing readiness for interprofessional education and collaboration in clinical sites

Interprofessional education experiences is now an integral part of accreditation criteria for health professional schools, and as a result, programs have had to implement interprofessional learning opportunities for all students. While strong models exist for didactic interprofessional training, there is a great need for interprofessional practice opportunities for students to apply the skills that they are learning. The practice environment often varies in how collaboration is viewed, and therefore, students may feel there is a gap between the 'ideal' collaborative environment of which they have been taught, and the reality of the practice setting. This can cause frustration for students, preceptors, and faculty. There is a great need to develop an assessment of the interprofessional clinical learning environment and to provide sites with the skills needed to maximize collaborative practice and learning opportunities. Additionally, a site assessment process can help clinical sites better prepare for improving current learning processes.