Karen E. Arscott, DO presents at Gold Humanism Honor Society National Conference

Karen E. Arscott, DO, MSc, associate professor of medicine at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, recently presented a talk on the school’s innovative IPE clerkship at the Gold Humanism Honor Society National Conference in Chicago, held March 30-April 1. Dr. Arscott said the talk was very well received, with many other medical school representatives asking questions and seeking information on the program.

The Interprofessional Clerkship, or IPE, is designed to provide medical students with meaningful experiences working in a multi-disciplinary team before they reach their residency, when the ability to function in a team will be crucial. The IPE also gives students perspectives on other healthcare disciplines – from physical therapy to social work – and helps these future doctors learn to keep the focus on the patient as a whole person with a multitude of needs.

According to Dr. Arscott, “This clerkship requirement addresses the need for physicians-in-training to understand the roles of all members of the healthcare team and to function well within these teams. It is highly innovative and experiential. The students are not shadowing; they are acting as the healthcare provider in supervision. It is imperative that the students see all aspects of the healthcare team – social work, nursing, PT, OT, pharmacy, administration and counseling, to name a few.”

Student feedback indicates the IPE helps students keep a holistic view of their patients and provides valuable experience in teamwork. “With this rotation having come to an end, I can now say that I have many new perspectives relating to the care of patients,” said one fourth-year student. Another said, “As a resident, it will be imperative to act as an active team member, to respect and embrace other disciplines, and to use resources to serve patients in a comprehensive and supportive way. So much of care resides in coordination, in not only creating but also implementing and following up on patient-centered care plans.”

In addition to the team experience, students are required to review care plans created by other healthcare providers and compare those care plans with the standard medical care plan. This allows the student the opportunity to understand that, in patient care, there are often many other persons offering information about a patient in the form of a care plan – and that may help when a patient is not responding as predicted. The fourth-year students are also required to write a reflection on the experience.  Reflection papers are not just a coda to the clerkship. Studies have found that reflection and writing are powerful tools to help internalize lessons and the meaning derived from them.

About Geisinger
Geisinger is among the nation’s leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the non-profit system generates $10 billion in annual revenues across 134 care sites - including 10 hospital campuses, and Geisinger Health Plan, with 600,000 members in commercial and government plans. The Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 5,000 medical professionals annually and conducts more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With 26,000 employees, including 1,600 employed physicians, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania’s largest employers with an estimated economic impact of $14 billion to the state’s economy. On March 31, 2024, Geisinger became the first member of Risant Health, a new nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country.  Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.