Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Teams and Academic Community Practice Partnerships: Lessons from the Field

AIHC Mentoring Program
Background
Interprofessional collaborative healthcare teams are a valuable resource for increasing access to care for historically marginalized communities. Academic-community practice partnerships leverage the resources of academic institutions with the networks and expertise of community partners to increase access to quality care that advances health equity. The ability to develop, implement, and educate students within these partnerships can differ based on whether they originate from academic medical centers or academic institutions without a medical center. The aim of this poster is to explore the differing perspectives in establishing interprofessional academic-community practice partnerships to serve the healthcare needs in communities of need.
Design
This poster discusses the similarities, differences, benefits, and challenges of interprofessional healthcare team development within academic-community partnerships from differing academic perspectives. The experiences of faculty within an academic medical center in developing an interprofessional practice partnership with a community non-profit and a Federally Qualified Health Center will be discussed along with experiences of faculty within an academic setting without a medical center to address access to care for migrant farmworkers.
Results
The formation of successful interprofessional academic-community practice partnerships from an academic medical center and academic institution without a medical center point-of-view has important differences and similarities. The partnerships successfully draw from the respective resources, expertise, and strengths to provide access to care to communities in need by utilizing interprofessional care teams.
Conclusions
There are important lessons to be learned and shared between academic medical centers and academic institutions without a medical center in forming academic-community practice partnerships. The benefits and challenges include the availability of interprofessional providers and students, resources, and community partners with mutual goals. The ability to build interprofessional collaborative healthcare teams outside of academic medical centers, as well as within, is an important discussion if we are to address the issue of access to care in vulnerable communities.
Reflections
Interprofessional academic-practice partnerships are mutually beneficial in increasing access to quality care and supporting interprofessional student training. Continuous efforts in team development are essential to harness the full potential of the practice partnerships. The integration of these models can lead to enhanced care coordination, system integration, and a holistic approach to patient care. Understanding the strengths and differences between these entities is vital for the evolution of healthcare delivery and interprofessional education.
The poster fulfills the criteria of identifying and addressing factors beyond clinical care such as IPC team development that impacts health.