Interdisciplinary Education

Leaders in the health professions need to be able to work effectively across disciplines and in collaboration with health professionals of different specialties. To that end, the Institute's curriculum seeks to prepare students:

to engage in critical thinking to guide professional practice and scholarly inquiry;
to integrate knowledge and theories into professional practice;
to use effective communication and collaboration skills;
to influence health policy and practices in evolving systems of health care delivery in a pluralistic society;
to incorporate ethical and professional values and standards in the delivery of health care.

To accomplish this, interdisciplinary activities are interwoven with discipline-specific learning. The interdisciplinary aspects of the curriculum include required courses at different levels, elective courses, shared clinical experiences, and research projects.

All students who are entering the health professions through the entry-level programs share a course in Ethical Issues in Health Care, while students who are already health professionals and in the advanced programs share courses in research and statistics.

There is content of interest to students from all disciplines in a number of different interdisciplinary course offerings. Each academic program also offers more specialized courses, seventeen in all, that are of interest to students in other disciplines. Nine courses are prerequisite courses for degree programs and are open to students from a variety of backgrounds.

Many clinical issues cross disciplinary lines. All students at the MGH Institute participate in an interdisciplinary clinical seminar where the focus is on clinical issues, patient care management, teamwork, collaboration, and the perspectives and roles of various health care providers. Students, faculty, and staff are invited to participate in quarterly Schwartz Center Educational Rounds where the focus is on strengthening the relationship between patients and caregivers.

In many clinical placement sites, there are students from more than one of our disciplines; faculty aim to assure that common goals are met and students are interacting and sharing these experiences. Finally, students have the opportunity to become involved in research. These collaborative activities may involve faculty from a variety of disciplines as well as practicing health professionals.