Clinical Education Spring 2021

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Clinical Education - Pandemic Reality Calls for Innovative Action


Innovation is key when it comes to describing Dalhousie, The Faculty of Health, and the School of Occupational Therapy. As our pandemic reality forces us to evolve and adapt at a quicker than usual pace - our innovative mindset gave us the footing we needed to identify creative solutions.

Case in point is demonstrated through an interfaculty Dalhousie initiative in interprofessional learning. This unique learner centred, interprofessional approach to primary care in family medicine was first conceptualized in 2019 by Dr. Joanna Zed, Director of the Spryfield and Mumford Dalhousie Collaborative Family Medicine Clinics (Department of Family Medicine, DFM), in collaboration with Dr. Lynn Shaw, the Director of the Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy.

The collaboration began in March of 2020, and involved family medicine residents, Dalhousie family medicine faculty, occupational therapy and physical therapy students and faculty (Jonathan Harris, Fieldwork Education Coordinator for OT), in developing a unique Virtual Integrated Interprofessional Access (VIIA) approach to care. This virtual innovation was initiated in response to the negative impact that COVID-19 had on access to rehabilitation services and care for patients with chronic conditions, and the loss of clinical education and field rotations for OT and PT students.

From March to September of 2020, occupational therapy and physiotherapy students joined DFM Halifax clinical teams to work with faculty and residents to develop need assessment, program development and implementation. To accommodate Covid-19 safety guidelines, students used the VIIA approach to communicate and collaborate directly on patient care and outcomes.

The program received positive feedback from students and providers. Patients also commented positively, describing the service experience as "a valued contribution to student education". The program gave DFM new research in order to evaluate the virtual format as a model for collaborative care and learning, and students received the well-rounded experience of working with an interprofessional team in a virtual setting.



The VIIA program has been extended to August 2021 for Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy students who will continue to deliver virtual medical home services with the DFM team and medical residents at the Spryfield and Mumford Clinics.

J Zed (PI) L Shaw, C O’Keefe, J Harris - OT Co-Applicants – Awarded Living Laboratory Grant Application Virtual Integrative IP Access (VIIA): Advancing medical and Interprofessional (IP) education through a Virtual Family Medicine (FM), Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy. Department of Family Medicine.Total: $5,000.