The University Health System received a new $1 million federal grant to improve teamwork in patient care between nursing professors, medical professors and clinicians. The grant will allow improvements by expanding work and education between nurses and doctors.
The grant will specifically be used to develop curriculum aimed at aiding the treatment of patients with chronic conditions.
Dr. Valentina Brashers, founder and director of the University’s Center for Academic Strategic Partnerships for Interprofessional Research, will lead the project.
“At the University of Virginia, ASPIRE has become nationally-recognized for creating innovative grant-funded inter-professional programs that train students and clinicians how to collaborate more effectively,” Brashers said in an email.
This program is not only for the doctors and nurses already in the field, but also for
students of both professions — including undergraduate students.
Brashers said the sickest patients are often the ones who need the most attention, and a lack of attention can lead to mistakes, only causing more problems for these patients.
Unfortunately, programs which help these patients through interprofessional healing are limited.
“The skyrocketing cost of health care in the U.S. has been paired with a decline in many national parameters for care quality, access and safety,” Brashers said. “The aging population and the heavy toll borne by persons who do not have access to primary and preventive care [have] created a crisis that demands changes in how we provide health care, and therefore in how we prepare health care professionals.”
To this end, the grant is aimed to reshape the process of preparation.
“Learners will engage in reflective journaling exercises to help them link content with their ongoing active clinical practices,” Brashers said. “They will participate in a number of simulations with standardized patients that address specific areas of patient safety and will be observed for teamwork and quality improvement competencies. Finally, they will work in teams to develop and implement quality improvement projects that will be mentored and then assessed by inter-professional quality improvement experts.”
Other schools, including George Washington University and University of Minnesota, received similar grants in the last month.
“The important narrative is that our families, neighbors and communities deserve safe, high-quality care — and it is the goal of this program to prepare future health care leaders to make transformative changes in how we deliver care in this country,” Brashers said.
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