The IPC Symphony Orchestra

It has really been too long between blogs. I've been visiting with clinical educators and their associates throughout Ontario. There are so many interesting IPC initiatives and activities underway! I hope this blog will help us to share these initiatives as we build our interprofessional network in health care.

In understanding IPC in the daily lives of health care professionals, a recent IPC participant shared the view that practising IPC is like similar to the performance of an orchestra. When Vivaldi is featured, the string section is likely to hold a prominent place in the concert. In the performance, there may be a solo for the first violin; there will also be times when the first violin is supported by the second. In the event that Bach is the featured composer, the section of prominence may be very different. When I think of Bach, my image draws up the heavy rhythms that unlie the music and, during such a performance, I might be quite drawn to the work of the percussion section.

Interprofessional collaboration is about leveraging the knowledge and skills of all health disciplines in achieving positive outcomes for patients. For many patients, the expertise of Medical Laboratory Scientists will support diagnosis (approximately 80% of patient diagnosis is generated by the work of our laboratory colleagues). Depending on diagnosis, any number of health care professionals may have a prominent role on the patient's path to recovery... violins for Vivaldi; percussion for Bach.

Share the metaphor that best describes your understanding of IPC! Take the IPC metaphor poll and/or leave your ideas in the comment box.