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April 10, 2018 - The King’s College Physician Assistant program coordinated the college’s participation in the recent ninth annual Northeast/Central Pennsylvania Interprofessional Education Coalition (NECPA IPEC) Collaborative Care Summit.

More than 819 students and nearly 126 facilitators from various health professions attended this year’s summit. Ten different colleges/universities participated. The summit was held simultaneously at sites in the Wilkes-Barre and Scranton area. King’s was one of the regional sites in Wilkes-Barre. 

The goal of the summit was to prepare all students in health professions majors so that they can collaboratively work together with the common goal of building a safer and better patient-centered U.S. health care system. The conference consisted of an opening session and small, interprofessional group discussions. 

The summit focused on the topic of opioid use, where natural communication was facilitated during a simulation where students identify their professional roles as they responded to a patient case in the acute and chronic setting.  Participants discussed the role of bias and stereotype as it applies to health care for patients who use and abuse opioids, the impact and challenges of opioid usage on individual and population health, individual perspectives and the role of healthcare professionals on improving the health of patients and communities, and responsibilities in forming a collaborative team that provides comprehensive and patient-centered care.

Pictured seated are student representatives from local colleges and universities.  Shown, from left, is Erica Hunter, Dental Hygiene, LCCC; Alexander Betz, Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine; Richard Jones, Physician Assistant, King’s College; Nikko Bonavoglia, Pharmacy, Wilkes; and Kristian Dyrli, Physical Therapy, Misericordia.

Pictured standing, from left, are faculty representatives Noreen Brzozowski, MSN, RN, LCCC; Christine Raup, BSN, RN, CPN, Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine; Jocelyn Hook, MPAS, PA-C, King’s College; Steven Kheloussi, Pharmacy, Wilkes; and Darlene Donnelly, RNC, Misericordia.