Collaborative Practice in Healthcare

Today’s healthcare labor force is being asked to work in collaborative, integrated teams to achieve the goal of delivering patient-centered, safe and effective care that meets the growing and complex needs of an aging population. A vision for collaborative practice fueled by inter-professional education has emerged on a national level, and momentum is building in academic and practice settings in support of this vision. In order to sustain this momentum and make inter-professional collaborative practice a reality, healthcare leaders and educators must critically evaluate the cultures, systems and infrastructures currently in place.

Healthcare organizations also must understand that collaboration is more than just working together and working well with others outside the traditional care circle. It is also a commitment to a new operational framework and an acknowledgment that an integrated healthcare workforce will need innovative tools, resources and technology that can stand up to and promote the demands of team-based care delivery today.

As defined by the World Health Organization, collaborative practice occurs when multiple health workers from different professional backgrounds provide comprehensive services by working with patients, their families, caregivers and communities to deliver the highest quality of care across settings.

This effort is supported by a growing body of evidence that demonstrates that the incorporation of patient preferences contributes to higher-value healthcare. Value also is enhanced when patients, families and communities assume increased responsibility for factors influencing health.

Inextricably linked to this care delivery model is inter-professional education, which takes place when students of two or more professions learn about, from and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes.

When looking for tools and technology that support collaborative practice, it is important that healthcare leaders seek out broad-based and cohesive solutions that are patient-centered, align with clinical workflow, support inter-professional teams and span the continuum of care. In a global sense, this transition will bring even more importance to the quality of an organization’s.

Patient-centric and team-focused, inter-professional collaborative practice represents a new playing field for today’s healthcare plans and hospitals. Boundaries have been removed, lines have been erased and rule books rewritten. Some things, however, remain unchanged: Leadership is integral to creating a motivated team, the ultimate goal is still the highest pursuit of the healthcare mission and the workforce must be equipped with tools and resources to handle the challenges of the healthcare environment.