Tennessee Interprofessional Practice and Education Consortium (TIPEC)

Dr. Naomi Eichorn has devoted part of her career as a researcher and educator to developing interprofessional practice in Tennessee. In 2018, Eichorn was a founding member of the Tennessee Interprofessional Practice and Education Consortium (TIPEC). TIPEC exists to bring together academic institutions, State of TN departments, public health and community agencies, and other entities committed to interprofessional education (IPE) to share resources, network, and establish best practices in IPE across the state. This goal was accomplished through multiple working groups. Dr. Eichorn co-directed a working group focused on classroom-based IPE with Dr. Christine Mullins from the nursing program at East TN State University. A key accomplishment of this group was to gather and organize IPE training activities being implemented in various health-related professional programs across the state. Their resulting curricular resource is available to the public on the TIPEC website and was also published in the Journal of Allied Health in 2021. See below for links to these resources.

Dr. Eichorn shared her perspective on IPE in the following Q&A. Read on to learn more about IPE opportunities in Tennessee.

What have you found to be valuable about being involved in TIPEC?

My involvement in TIPEC provided exciting opportunities to network, brainstorm and plan IPE experiences. TIPEC members span multiple health-related professions and include academic faculty as well as practicing clinicians and individuals working at community or state agencies. At the time of its inception, many faculty members of TIPEC were preparing to introduce IPE opportunities into their program curricula; collaborating helped us share ideas and resources instead of constantly re-inventing the wheel and starting from the ground up.

How can UofM students take advantage of IPE opportunities within the program?

Recognize opportunities that are built into your classes and clinical experiences. Joint lectures or research with audiology students, co-treatments, shadowing and debriefing experiences with related professionals, interdisciplinary meetings, and our annual interprofessional poverty simulation are all valuable IPE experiences. Information about other interprofessional events is often circulated via email – take advantage and join when you can!

What words of encouragement would you offer to students who are interested in taking the initiative to participate in extracurricular IPE opportunities?

Go for it! Understanding what our colleagues in related areas do will make you a far better clinician and help our colleagues better understand what we do as SLPs and Audiologists. It’s a win-win! If you learn about an IPE opportunity, please also share this information so that others can benefit. I am happy to collect and forward these details to students in our School but can also share with colleagues at related programs in the Memphis area so that we can bring together as diverse a group as possible and maximize each IPE experience!

Two key opportunities that TIPEC offers are the annual summer conference in Nashville and the TN Collaborative Practice Society (TCPS).

Tell us more about the TIPEC annual conference.

The annual conference is a wonderful way to connect with fellow professionals interested in IPE! The conference is held on the Lipscomb University campus in Nashville and the atmosphere is casual and welcoming. There is a keynote speaker each year – this year’s talk was given by Dr. Tina Gunaldo, IPE director at LSU Health Science Center, and focused on the challenges of teamwork. The conference also includes a variety of talks and posters, many summarizing student-led projects. Students are strongly encouraged to attend and to actively participate – registration fees are nominal ($10) and there are excellent built-in opportunities to learn about how to get involved in IPE and contribute to state-level IPE efforts.

TIPEC recently hosted its annual conference at the end of July. Look out for the dates of the 2025 conference!

TIPEC created the TN Collaborative Practice Society (TCPS) to recognize “those students from across the state of Tennessee who have taken part in Interprofessional Education opportunities provided within their program curriculum as well as taking the initiative to find extracurricular IPE opportunities in which to participate.” (https://tipec.org/tennessee-collaborative-practice-society-tcps/)

Why would you encourage students to consider applying for the TN Collaborative Practice Society?

Our professions overlap and intersect with so many others! Regardless of our clients’ ages and clinical profiles, we can support them most effectively if we collaborate effectively with our colleagues in OT, PT, medicine, nutrition, optometry, law, psychology, education… and so many other professions. IPE is all about learning with, about, and from students and practitioners from other fields. Pursuing and engaging in these types of experiences as a student will help you approach your work from a broader perspective and connect you with networks you can plug into throughout your career.

What is the process for applying to the TN Collaborative Practice Society?

By the time CSD students are preparing to graduate, many will have met the requirements for induction to TCPS. This special recognition sets you apart from other graduates and highlights your commitment to IPE and IPP.

The application process is brief and straightforward, and you can review the evaluation rubric on the website to understand how applicants are evaluated (and how to make your application exceptional!): https://tipec.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/TCPS-Applicant-Review-Rubric-1.pdf. One of the primary requirements consists of at least 25 hours of IPE/IPP experience – this could include research-related activities, clinical experiences, or educational experiences, as long as these go beyond required coursework. An elective course with significant IPE focus – such as our Medical SLP elective, Public Health in CSD, or comparable courses – would count toward this requirement. Clinical experiences that involve grand rounds, interdisciplinary evaluations, IEP meetings, or collaborative in-services would also all satisfy this requirement. Many of our students also engage in research that is interprofessional in nature. A second important requirement is the preparation of a personal statement that describes your relevant experiences, your commitment to IPE/IPP, and how you see these experiences shaping your future career. Your statement should also address core IPE competencies, which you can find here: https://tipec.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/IPEC_Core_Competencies_Version_3_2023.pdf. I am happy to answer any questions students may have about reviewer expectations or the application process. Two recent SLP graduates, Sarah Essaied (’22) and Miranda Fisher (’22) were among the first TCPS inductees!