Developing Interprofessional Preceptors to Promote Intentional Interprofessional Education in Practice Settings: Reflections from the Preceptors in the Nexus Workshop

Demand is increasing for health professional graduates to enter practice ready to function effectively in interprofessional collaborative teams centered on patient care. The World Health Organization (2010) postulated that interprofessional education yields practitioners ready for interprofessional collaborative practice, which in turn is the path to improving our fragmented health system. In 2014, the University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC) received funding from the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation in response to the need to develop interprofessional preceptors (Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, 2013). We define interprofessional preceptors as a preceptor from an professional that intentionally educates learners from different professions in authentic practice-based environments, combing patient care and clinical teaching with explicit learning about how interprofessional collaboration contributes to high quality, patient-centered, team-based care (Shrader & Zaudke, 2018). KUMC created a partnership with the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education (NCIPE) and the University of Minnesota to develop an online toolkit, curricular materials, and a Preceptors in the Nexus workshop focused specifically on professional development for interprofessional preceptors. Interprofessional preceptor development is critical as they are the nexus (or bridge) between education and practice