Interprofessional teaching

Module 1 focusses on the person, embedded in their specific living environment and social relationships. Important topics include communication in the therapeutic context, understandings of health and illness, the Swiss healthcare system and its players, ethical and legal principles as well as analysing the situation of the person in the interprofessional treatment team. In cooperation with the Institute for Medical Teaching at the University of Bern and the Bern Institute for General Practitioner Medicine, a seminar on confidentiality is organised, which students from the Bern University of Applied Sciences attend together with medical students in Bern and Basel.

Digitalisation in society and the healthcare sector has a direct impact on interprofessional collaboration and patient treatment options.New technologies are changing information and communication channels and in some cases enabling new forms of cooperation. In order to navigate the increasingly complex healthcare system, health literacy on the part of the affected person and the treatment team is essential. In addition to these cross-professional topics, Module 2 focuses on specific aspects of interprofessionality, decision-making processes and communication in interprofessional teams.

Health is the result of multi-layered processes and is characterised by various influencing factors - including physical, psychological, systemic/social, cultural and material factors. Effective health promotion and prevention are therefore only possible if a wide variety of perspectives are taken into account. The basics of project management are deepened in Module 3 within the framework of a real, interprofessional health promotion and prevention project. In mixed-professional groups, students spend a few weeks developing information brochures, workshops, recommendations for action and other needs-orientated products for the various project partners. 

Ethical questions always arise in the professional care of people with health concerns. In this module, you will discover how these questions can be discussed theoretically, illustrated practically and developed in your specific professional practice. You will also deepen your knowledge of the ethical principles of interprofessional collaboration and clinical ethics, which are indispensable for the field of activity of healthcare professionals at Master's level.

In this module, various types of communication are explored in depth. On the one hand, communication with clients and patients (therapeutic relationship) will take centre stage. You will also learn the advanced technique of motivational dialogue in an interprofessional context or in critical situations with clients or patients. On the other hand, you will professionalise your written expression in scientific writing, gain an insight into communication in research institutions and consolidate your public speaking skills in a public and health policy context.

This module examines the basics of leadership, project management and various leadership models. You will learn about organisational development options for initiating, implementing and subsequently evaluating change management processes. 

You will familiarise yourself with advanced practice and the corresponding roles. You will deal with the development and implementation of new roles for healthcare professionals in future or existing care models. The interprofessional context will help you gain a holistic understanding of such new models and roles. At the same time, you will learn about the legal foundations as well as health policy and health economic issues in connection with advanced practice roles. The course also looks at how such new care models can be implemented in practice.

In this module, you will gain an in-depth understanding of the healthcare system and the decision-making behaviour of key players on the demand side (insured persons, patients) and the supply side (healthcare professionals, doctors) of the healthcare market. A wide range of practice-relevant questions are analysed on the basis of theoretical and current empirical research results from health economics. The question of the causes of cost growth in the healthcare sector is discussed, as is the influence of financial incentives on the treatment decisions of healthcare professionals or the effect of deductibles on the utilisation of medical services by patients.

Food as medicine. The module deals with the effect of food on human behaviour in the context of psychoneuroimmunology. Current scientific findings on the connection between intestinal flora, pain and depression are also discussed, as are pre- and probiotics and phytotherapy in pain therapy.

The digital transformation in healthcare offers numerous opportunities for health promotion, prevention, diagnostics, therapy, care and treatment of people of all age groups and care settings. With a targeted, reflective, critical and active design, the digital transformation can maintain and optimise the quality and efficiency of the Swiss healthcare system.