Assessing Interprofessional Collaboration at Clinical Learning Sites: Methodology on Developing the IP-CLEAR Tool.

Area of Science:

• Health Professions Education
• Interprofessional Practice
• Clinical Learning Environments

Background:

• Effective interprofessional clinical learning environments (CLE) are crucial for healthcare education.
• Existing tools may not adequately assess or support the development of integrated interprofessional CLEs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the development of the Interprofessional Clinical Learning Environment Assessment and Reflection (IP-CLEAR) tool.
• To outline the intended use of the IP-CLEAR tool for clinical sites.

Main Methods:

• The IP-CLEAR tool was developed by faculty from nursing, pharmacy, and medicine at UNC-CH.
• Collaboration included the North Carolina Area Health Education Consortium (NC AHEC) and UNC-CH Office of Interprofessional Education and Practice (IPEP).

Main Results:

• The IP-CLEAR tool provides a framework for assessing and enhancing interprofessional CLEs.
• The tool is designed for clinical sites aiming to integrate learners into high-quality interprofessional experiences.

Conclusions:

• The IP-CLEAR tool offers a structured approach to developing and evaluating interprofessional clinical learning environments.
• Future work will focus on refining and disseminating the IP-CLEAR tool for broader adoption in health professions education.