Dr. Nadja Graff, Vice President of Touro’s Division of Graduate Studies, welcomed guests; and the keynote speaker, Dr.  Kenneth Miller, a clinical educator who holds a doctorate in physical therapy from Touro, talked about treating the members of the healthcare team equally and articulating patient goals. “Our goal for younger people is to help them live long and healthy lives; our goal for older patients should be to maximize their function,” Dr. Miller said.  He added that healthcare professionals need to assess, “whether the patient receives care that is coordinated, timely, efficient, and patient-centered.”

A panel of experts in nutrition, physical medicine and rehabilitation, interprofessional staff education, social work, aging services, and community pharmacy shared their insights and anecdotes about healthcare challenges faced by their patients and how IPE is helping to solve these issues. Students from the various disciplines then broke into groups and were tasked with creating a hypothetical care plan for a fictitious patient.

The event was chaired by Nathan Boucher, Assistant Professor/Director of Graduate Education at Touro’s Physician Assistant Program in Manhattan. “A patient’s well-being hinges on how well a healthcare team communicates and shares information and ideas,” said Professor Boucher. Our students finished the day feeling they’ve learned how collaboration can impact patient care. As a result, they feel better prepared to enter the workforce and ready to practice team-based care.”