QU Health is committed to integrating IPE experiences into the different health care curricula with a vision to be regionally recognized for excellence in interprofessional health education. IPE is not simply bringing students from different health care professions together but it is an opportunity for health care students to learn with, from and about each other in line with the Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education definition of interprofessional education: “Interprofessional Education occurs when two or more professions learn with, from and about each other to improve collaboration and the quality of care" (CAIPE 2002). Formal IPE initiatives in Qatar are coordinated and organized by QU Health Interprofessional Education Committee (IPEC) with representation from fourteen program across the four healthcare colleges in Qatar including Medicine (Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar), Nursing (University of Calgary in Qatar), and Health Sciences (College of the North Atlantic Qatar) since 2014.
IPEC goal is to provide guidance and support in implementing and integrating IPE within all the curricula at QU Health and other Healthcare Program in Qatar to improve health systems and patient care in advance of their careers in Qatar. In addition to promoting awareness for IPE and interprofessional collaboration in Qatar and the Middle East.
Through collaboration between the different healthcare faculty, great IPE initiatives have been successfully implemented to enhance the student learning experience and to prepare them for a collaborative practice once they graduate. Many of our IPE initiative successes is due to the passion and commitment of our students and faculty members and as our IPE program grows, we are successfully engaging students and faculty members from the different professions to enhance the different IPE activities and initiatives through research, faculty professional development and student led initiatives. I am very optimistic on the future of collaborative practice in Qatar and am confident that our students will be drivers for positive change in the health care sector.
Dr Alla El-Awaisi
Director of Clinical Operations and Engagement
Section Head for Interprofessional Education
Vice President for Health and Medical Sciences Office