Will healthcare reform affect medical education for healthcare providers?

Professional education will need to change to a competency approach in order to improve patient-centered and community-oriented care (IPEC, 2011). Never before has interprofessional collaboration been more important to the health care needs of society than in the wake of health care reform.

For pre-licensure professional programs, educators will need to collaborate across professional roles in order to incorporate a competency approach that will benefit all disciplines in health care. This approach will emphasize a combination of  knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that will make up a “collaborative practice-ready” graduate (WHO, 2010 as cited in IPEC). 

IPEC (2011). Core competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice. Report of an expert panel.