I was exposed to the very unique experience of interprofessional grand rounds in preparing for my upcoming residency. Dr Carlos Alvarado-Valdés is an intensivist with Banner Del Webb hospital and a proponent of interprofessional practice. Dr. Alvarado-Valdés explained to me the process of bringing together multiple disciplines including pharmacy, respiratory therapy, nursing, and other disciplines along with the providers to openly discuss cases, challenge the team’s knowledge, and form a treatment plan that includes all involved with executing that plan. The grand rounds also include students from these different disciplines exposing them to interprofessional practice.
An article describing Providence Healthcare’s implementation of Interprofessional Grand Rounds provides an insight of just how effective it is to bring together a wide ranging collaborative team into the grand rounds setting.
"Mounting evidence suggests that when health professionals work together sharing their knowledge and skills, the quality of patient care improves. Research shows that collaboration between different professionals learning from, with and about each other helps to decrease incidences of harm, improve patient flow and improves front-line staff job satisfaction. Acknowledging these positive outcomes, the interprofessional practice team at Providence embarked on a multi-year project to facilitate and encourage increased collaboration amongst care teams across the Hospital programs and services. One of the strategies initiated was the development of Interprofessional Grand Rounds."
A search of the Internet shows St Louis University holding interprofessional grand rounds as part of the curriculum twice a year.
I note some important differences in reading the Providence Healthcare article and comparing this description of Interprofessional Grand Rounds to my experience with Banner Del Webb. That begs the question of, "are there better ways to implement interprofessional grand rounds?" The focus within the Providence Healthcare grand rounds is, "improving team work, learning something new, and having fun and competing." The grand rounds as described by Dr. Alvarado-Valdés centered primarily on the team’s focus given a particular patient’s case, and generating understanding within the team by leveraging interdisciplinary knowledge.
What are some more examples of interprofessional grand rounds and how effective are interprofessional grand rounds in bridging the chasm that prevents IPEP from ubiquity?
