Embracing Every Voice: Creating a Culture of Inclusivity in Interprofessional Settings

Presented by Kathryn Fraser, PhD, Halifax Health FMR, and Jeffrey Ring, PhD
STFM Conference on Practice and Quality Improvement 2024 Opening Session | Sunday, September 15, 2024

 “Why be a star when you can make a constellation?” (Mariam Kaba) This simple phrase alludes to the power of inclusivity, which can allow your organization to shine brighter and be better. We are often challenged in health care to bring people together across disciplines because there is so much we may not understand about each other’s work. Add to that our fundamental differences that vary by racial ethnic background and other areas of difference, and we stand to lose a lot through staying surface-level in our interactions and hiding behind our differences. Medicine is an industry steeped in hierarchy and inequity, and thus requires intentional approaches to building equitable practices. Fostering inclusivity can push workers to get through biases and blind spots, and develop equitable ways of working that maximize everyone’s skills and talents.

This presentation will illustrate ways to help team members actively listen to diverse perspectives, share their own experiences, and engage in collaborative discussions and practices in their workplace. Organizations should be intentional when teaching interprofessional teams to work to their highest potential, as there is evidence that inclusivity promotes success and helps organizations thrive. The presenters will share personal experiences that shaped their unique approaches to promoting inclusion and equitable practices. Participants will gain skills to examine their own biases and build respectful, equitable practices with their co-workers. They will go through an exercise to help create authentic ways of interacting with interdisciplinary, diverse teams to achieve common goals.

Learning Objectives: Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:

• Identify ways that interdisciplinary work groups can enhance productivity, innovation and effective patient care
• Describe common challenges that interdisciplinary teams face through a lens of equity and inclusion
• Effectively harness self-reflection to create enhanced communication and collaborations that will benefit their organizations

Presentation Slides

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