Zeena Nackerdien

Enhancing Inpatient Care Through Interprofessional Collaboration: The Nurse's Impact

This essay explores the pivotal role of nurses within the context of interprofessional education (IPE) and interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) in hospital settings. It emphasizes the importance of effective teamwork in dynamic, high-pressure environments and highlights the Camden Coalition's healthcare hotspotting initiative, which provides comprehensive care to high-cost, high-needs patients through interprofessional teams. The identifies key vulnerable populations that “may fall through the cracks”, such as justice-involved or homeless individuals, and underscores the essential role of nurses in identifying and coordinating care for them. It also calls for more robust research to examine the links between nurse-driven IPE and patient-reported experience measures, focusing on patient safety indicators and team efficiency metrics.