Developing effective IPE initiatives often means that the ideal teammates are not educated under the same roof. The Vanderbilt Program in Interprofessional Learning (VPIL) is a partnership across four institutions and five professional schools in Nashville, Tennessee.  

VPIL places teams of four novice students, representing medicine and nursing from Vanderbilt University, pharmacy from Lipscomb and Belmont Universities, and social work from the Mid-Tennessee Collaborative at Tennessee State University in primarily ambulatory clinical settings for one half day a week over the course of two years. In addition to their clinic experience, the teams come together for other learning activities in classroom and simulation center settings and participate in a week-long immersion course that takes place prior to the home program orientations. Planning for VPIL began in 2008. We received a Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation award in 2010 and proceeded to enter our first cohort. As of 2014, 39 interprofessional student teams have participated in our program. 

The purpose of this webinar is to provide lessons learned from our experience and consider the primary tools needed for those colleagues either actively involved with inter-institutional collaborations or are considering strategies to build educational bridges. We will present the VPIL case from the perspective of leading change within educational systems (both at the university and clinical setting levels) and the administrative decisions necessary to support the complex coordination. 

Speakers

Heather A. Davidson, PhD

Heather Davidson, PhD is Assistant Professor of Medical Education and Administration at Vanderbilt University. She is also the Director of Program Development for the Vanderbilt Program in Interprofessional Learning (VPIL). Prior to joining the VPIL team, she worked at Stanford University School of Medicine managing strategic initiatives for education. Dr. Davidson received her Doctorate in Psychological Science with an emphasis in program evaluation from Vanderbilt University where her primary research focused on maternal-child health services.

Bonnie M. Miller, MD

Bonnie Miller, MD, is Associate Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and the Senior Associate Dean for Health Sciences Education. She has served in multiple leadership positions at Vanderbilt, including Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education (2005-2008) and Associate Dean for Medical Students (1999-2004).  With academic interests in the moral development of physicians and personalized learning in medicine, Dr. Miller is recognized as a senior leader in medical education, serving on numerous national organizations and consulting nationally and internationally on medical education matters. At Vanderbilt, she has guided the School of Medicine through several cycles of curriculum innovation, most recently spearheading the curriculum revision known as Curriculum 2.0.

Dr. Miller is the Primary Investigator of the American Medical Association’s Accelerating Change in Medical Education Grant, awarded to Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in June 2013. Vanderbilt is one of only 11 medical schools in the country to receive this honor. Despite her administrative responsibilities, Dr. Miller remains engaged in the daily lives of medical students and residents. She is Course Director for the Foundations of the Profession Course, the first course taken by medical students upon their arrival at the School.

Linda D. Norman, DNS, RN, FAAN

Linda Norman, 8th Dean of Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, has been active in nursing practice and nursing education for over four decades.  She is recognized as a national and international leader in nursing and health profession education. Dr. Norman has spearheaded curricular innovations ranging from blended learning, interdisciplinary education, quality improvement, disaster management and doctoral distance learning.

Dr. Norman continues to publish in established journals and has been responsible for more than $7.5 million in external funding in support of pioneering curriculum designs. A sought-after consultant in curriculum and evaluation, she currently serves as the director of evaluation at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Northwest Health Foundation and Partners Investing in Nursing’s Future Program. In 2004, she was recognized for her myriad contributions to the field by being inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.