In today's evolving healthcare landscape, it is imperative for students in health programs to engage in interprofessional training and care. To address this need, we propose the development of interprofessional education materials designed to enhance the integration and educational experiences of health coaches, other health student learners, and professionals in clinical settings. Utilizing in-depth patient cases that require partnership across multiple healthcare professions, learners will practice collaborative techniques in whole-person care.

Project Leads: Heather Christensen 

Key Osher Partners: Sian Cotton (Cincinnati)

Key Team Members: Caroline Gundler & Aaron Marshall

Health professional education is rapidly changing with online learning and AI. Nonetheless, the foundation of healing rests on core skills in interpersonal communication that create a sacred space while also empowering patients. Assessment of these core skills are too often assessed subjectively without validated instruments. We proposed to iterate an already-validated health coaching assessment tool that has observable anchors for numerous competencies in interpersonal education.

In 2024, the University of Vermont (UVM) and our Osher Center launched a Planetary Health initiative, grounded in the understanding that human health and civilization depend on the flourishing and wise stewardship of natural systems.  This proposed program would utilize existing medical center and university campus green spaces and leverage existing partnerships e.g.