National Interprofessional Healthcare Month

Community | 4/23/2025 By Jennifer Persons

Training future practitioners to work together to provide safer, higher quality healthcare.

April is National Interprofessional Healthcare Month, a time to highlight the importance of collaboration between healthcare providers across all fields and specialties. The National Academies of Practice first recognized National Interprofessional Healthcare Month in 2016 as part of its mission to promote safe and effective healthcare.

This collaboration is a key component of an education from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), where all students are trained to work in team-based care environments. The Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education (IPE) oversees this training through activities that supplement what students learn in the classroom and labs. The following activities are just some ways MCPHS students can practice their interprofessional skills.

In Boston, the Team Observed Structured Clinical Encounter (TOSCE) simulates a realistic patient interaction. Students work with peers from other programs to develop a care plan and then communicate it with the patient. After the simulation, students receive constructive feedback on patient care, communication skills, and collaboration with other providers.

These activities also extend beyond MCPHS. In the fall, students from the optometry, pharmacy, and physical therapy programs in Worcester invited local residents to campus to learn strategies for preventing falls. This spring, students in acupuncture, dental hygiene, nursing, optometry, and physical therapy programs traveled to Colony Retirement Homes to conduct health screenings for residents. They also provided tips on how to reduce stress and sleep better.

People sit at table talking. — Students from several programs on the Worcester campus traveled to Colony Retirement Homes this April to provide free health screenings to residents.

Acupuncture and PA Students look at patient. — Acupuncture and physical therapy students from Worcester worked through a case study together, discussing how each profession would treat the same issue.

People in masks looking at mannequin. — Physician assistant studies and nursing students in Boston worked together in the simulation lab to mimic how they collaborated on the same patient in a hospital setting.

MCPHS Students wearing lab coats sitting at a table. — The Center for IPE hosts several activities for students every year, including a case study on opioid use disorders, a book club, and dementia sensitivity training.

The Center also coordinates smaller, co-curricular activities, giving students a closer look into other fields. The acupuncture and physical therapy programs recently teamed up to work through a case study and create treatment plans using both areas of expertise. Physician assistant studies and nursing students in Boston worked together in the simulation lab to practice providing care in a hospital setting.

There are interprofessional opportunities for students beyond academics, too. The Interprofessional Healthcare Forum (IPHF) brings together student leaders from the Worcester and Manchester campuses. Once a year, they review a health condition they will all likely encounter in their professional practice. They also host Jeopardy Night each spring that is open to all MCPHS students.

University leaders are also champions of interprofessional healthcare. Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Caroline Zeind, PharmD, PhD, FNAP, is a Distinguished Fellow of the National Academies of Practice. She was inducted the same year that Professor of Health Sciences Dr. Robin Harvan delivered the keynote address at the organization’s annual meeting.

“When I first meet students, I ask them why they want to work in healthcare. Most of them say they want to help people,” Dr. Harvan said. “I always tell them you can’t do it alone. While they’re here [at MCPHS], they will learn how to work collaboratively across the healthcare spectrum because together is better.”