Students enrolled in multiple programs and institutions at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) participated in an 8-week Interprofessional Education (IPE) summer fellowship with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). A multi-institutional faculty and staff workgroup created, developed and implemented the fellowship; Dr. Rebecca Wiseman, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Nursing; Dr. Joan Pittman, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Social Work; Dr. Heather Congdon, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Pharmacy; Dr. Diane Alonso, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Department of Psychology; Ms. Lynn Cook, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) School of Public Health Science; Ms. Katie Morris, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC); Department of Social Work and Ms. Mary Lang, Chief Strategy Officer at USG. This project was funded in part by a grant from the University of Maryland Baltimore Center for Interprofessional Education.
A total of 16 students participated in the fellowship which ran from May 31-July 21. Two facilitators coordinated the curriculum development and programs: Ron Rivlin, DHHS Coordinator, and Katie Morris, Faculty Coordinator, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Department of Social Work.
The students who participated in the fellowship were: Anmer E. Ayala (UB Health Systems), Daphne Compere (UB Health Systems), Tony Li (UMB Nursing) Carol Teitelbaum (UMB Nursing), Vicki Zhu (UMB Pharmacy), Eric Sohn (UMB Pharmacy), Josline Ali-Napo (UMB Social Work), Shanice Morris (UMB Social Work), Arlene G. Cuanias (UMBC Psychology), Carolina Gutierrez (UMBC Psychology), Sarah Giacalone (UMBC Social Work), Andrea Arias (UMBC Social Work), Duc Duong (UMCP CCJS), Kevin Paul Tith (UMCP CCJS), Erum Khan (UMCP Public Health Science), Kristen Riesberg (UMCP Public Health Science).
The students experienced interdisciplinary teamwork by visiting several service agencies throughout Montgomery County (MC). The local service agencies that participated were: Linkages to Learning and School Based Health Center sites at Summit Hall Elementary; Family Justice Center; Avery Road Treatment Center; MC Detention Center and Behavioral Health and Corrections integrated services including the Clinical Assessment and Triage Program (CATS); MC Crisis Center; Pre-Release Center; Gude Drive Men's Shelter; Treehouse (Child Advocacy Center); The Juvenile Assessment Center (Juvenile Justice and Behavioral Health); Dennis Avenue Health Center (HIV and Communicable Diseases); and research was conducted on Adult Protective Services and Child Welfare.
The student’s final project included a presentation about their experiences with DHHS’s integrated approach and recommendations to help DHHS move forward in expanding integrated services. They also reflected on what the fellowship meant to them, some remarks included:
"This fellowship provided me with a lot of resources, it is a mental resource kit that I will be able to refer back to in my profession."......"I learned that a clinic's greatest asset is not the clients, it is the employees. If you take care of your employees, your team will take care of your clients."....."Engaging in interprofessional development enhances your team performance."
At the conclusion of the student presentations, DHHS Coordinator Ron Rivlin, reflected, “For the third year in a row we had a great group of students. They were smart, highly motivated, and very inquisitive. Through this learning experience, students were able to broaden their thinking about the many opportunities within their chosen profession, and how the different professions can work together to meet the multiple needs of their clients."