INTERPROFESSIONAL PERSPECTIVES
ADAPTIVE MEASURES “ The cornerstone of our school remains its professionals — the devoted faculty, staff and administrators who work diligently to deliver highquality instruction and support to our students. For many, the modifications to daily work and teaching strategies over the course of this year have been daunting, yet challenged us to re-evaluate and re-imagine the ways in which we operate in this new landscape and serve our students. School of Health and Medical Sciences faculty, staff and administrators tell us about their approaches to remote work and teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic.” – Niyala Shaw, BA 2 BRAVING THE PANDEMIC 2021
SHMS-related operational roles and responsibilities were added to my assistant dean portfolio during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to navigating the impact of the pandemic on the planning and execution of our IPE courses and SHMS IPE Core events, I was also leading multiple operational aspects of the SHMS Fall Restart planning at the IHS Campus in consultation with the dean. The COVID-19 pandemic imposed several fast-paced and impactful changes to University operations, which resonated at all levels of SHMS operations. To that end, more issues and barriers were being identified at a quicker pace, and there was a greater need for making decisions. More than ever, this required engagement with key stakeholders and information gathering. Ever since the University transitioned to remote operations, frequent, clear, concise and timely communication became more important than ever. Communication and relationship management became even more critical in ensuring that stakeholders had the support and resources they needed to meet their goals. As challenging as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been on our University, one of the positive outcomes of being so rapidly submerged into the virtual world has been the development of a more renewed perception of virtual learning. We hope to further explore more virtual opportunities.”
Vasiliki (Betty) Sgouras-Kapralos, MD Assistant Dean for Interprofessional Education
