Interprofessional Education

Transcript

Now, let’s hear from Samantha, a first year physician assistant studies student who was already a frontline healthcare worker when she came to Salus seeking the same interprofessional education that a real life hospital setting offers. At Salus, students from all of the universities programs collaborate as soon as their first year. From the classroom to clinical facilities, an interdisciplinary approach is part of the school’s mission in educating well-rounded future healthcare professionals. Samantha, it’s all yours.

– Thanks Alex. Prior to coming to Salus University, I was a respiratory therapist on the front lines of a medical ICU. There, I worked collaboratively with so many different healthcare disciplines that when I decided to go back to school to further my education as a physician assistant, I knew I wanted to go to a program that not only valued but preached interdisciplinary education and Salus did just that. As a first year graduate student, I take a course title evidence-based practice all of the first year students from all of the different healthcare specialties take this course together. I was not only able to meet, but work with students of the various different future health care professions from optometry, to audiology, to speech language pathology and more. But I also felt like I gained a further understanding of each of the different professions which is vital when becoming a future healthcare professional. Salus values that early clinical experience so as a first year student, I’m already assessing patients and shadowing providers across various specialties. This is a decided advantage that other schools may not have to offer. In fact, one of my favorite clinical experiences was at the Speech Language Institute with a speech language pathologist. As a future physician assistant, I’m going to have patients with these medical conditions that I’ll need to refer to a speech pathologist. Now, I feel as though I’m educated and can understand what my patients will be going through once I have to refer them and their care is now out of my hands. Salus students are exposed to patients at all university clinical facilities not just within their own program. Interdisciplinary exposure is really the bedrock of a Salus education. Salus university prepares its healthcare professionals for the real world and interdisciplinary education is a real life skill that we will carry with us into our work in the future. I feel confident as a student interacting with specialty providers, and I feel like that’ll translate into my work as a physician assistant. Back to you, Alex.

– Take it from Samantha. Coming from the front lines, she already knows how important collaboration is among a healthcare team. Rooted in interprofessional education and clinical experiences, Salus students interact with each other from the start of their education. Along Samantha’s path to becoming a practicing physician assistant, she will be exposed to all of the various program curriculum, learning how to treat the whole patient, which is exactly what Salus graduates are known for in the healthcare industry. When you graduate from Salus, you will be Salus strong. Thanks again for sharing that, Samantha.