Interprofessional Education

At D'Youville, students in healthcare majors work together to build a practical understanding of interprofessional collaboration through unique clinical immersion labs.

As one of just a handful of institutions across the country offering interprofessional healthcare education, D'Youville is a leader in preparing its students to be the best professionals in their fields.

Healthcare majors at D'Youville take two semesters of the Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center. At this unique clinical simulation, students learn and practice their skills in an environment that mirrors what they'll experience once they graduate. 

Studies show that when healthcare professionals collaborate across clinical specialties, patient outcomes improve. The Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center offers students the chance to develop their skills as part of a healthcare team.

About the Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center

The Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center is a learning experience for students majoring in eight healthcare professions at D'Youville. The center prepares students to work as part of a collaborative healthcare team — in a safe, simulated clinical setting, with skilled actors playing patients.

The curriculum is designed by D'Youville faculty and emulates real-life patient scenarios, in a controlled, simulated environment. The actors follow scripts and with scenarios spanning the arc of care — from recovery to after-care and ongoing or developing complications. Skilled instructors guide students every step of the way. 

We live stream the sessions, so students can view interaction with the patient, debrief as a group and share insights from different clinical perspectives. Discussions focus on building the kind of teamwork that a healthcare professional actually encounters on a regular basis. Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center sessions are offered in the spring and fall semesters.

Hub Simulation Center
Undergraduate Degrees

Mission & History

The philosophy of the Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center is to assure that healthcare graduates from D'Youville can truly function on a holistic, integrated team focused on high-quality, patient-centered care. The goal of the center is to assure that D'Youville graduates recognize the unique, complementary contributions of each member of the healthcare team.

The World Health Organization , PEW Health Commission and the Institute of Medicine identify interprofessional education — when students from two or more professions learn about, from, and with each other — as a priority in healthcare education. Once students understand how to work interprofessionally, they are ready to enter the workplace as a member of the collaborative practice team.

Interprofessional Simulation Center

Faculty Resources

Faculty at D'Youville are welcome to join dozens of faculty who are part of the Interprofessional Education and Simulation Center. Some use their affiliation with the center to learn from and interact with other healthcare professionals. Others use the project to conduct research in interprofessional education (IPE) in healthcare.

close up of stethoscope in simulation lab

Our Partnerships

Funding

The center is funded by grants from J. Warren Perry and Charles Donald Perry Memorial Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo. This grant supports innovative, sustainable  projects that encourage institutional collaboration and benefit Western New York. 

Catholic Health Partnership

D'Youville has partnered with one of the region's biggest healthcare systems, Catholic Health System. D'Youville students benefit from the use of Catholic Health's newly-built state-of-the-art simulation lab in downtown Buffalo.