The School is sharing this news release from UNC’s Rural Interprofessional Health Initiative, a collaboration involving health care professional programs across campus. Lisa Zerden and Meryl Kanfer represent the School in serving as “Faculty Champions” for RIPHI.
The UNC RIPHI (Rural Interprofessional Health Initiative) team was presented with an honorable mention of the 2018 George E. Thibault Nexus Award at the recent Nexus Summit Conference held in Minneapolis, Minn., on July 31, 2018. The Nexus Summit is sponsored by the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education.
The award celebrates exemplary interprofessional practice in the United States and honors those who are thinking and acting differently to allow education and practice to connect for health and health care.
The award, previously only given to one organization, now recognizes educational institutions, health systems, clinics and/or community organizations for extraordinary contributions to the Nexus, such as linking health professions education and interprofessional practice to transform care delivery, improve health outcomes and decrease costs.
This great work is made possible by several partners including the William R. Kenan Charitable Trust and the UNC School of Medicine Office of Rural Initiatives. In its first year of funding, RIPHI educated 42 students from the health professional schools and partnered with six community partners focused on advancing rural health in North Carolina.
This would not be possible without the dedication of the RIPHI Faculty Champions and the Deans from each health profession school, who have pledged their support to the RIPHI mission. Our Faculty Champions serve a vital role in guiding and advising our students as they carry out their work serving the rural residents of North Carolina. To learn more about RIPHI and to meet our Faculty Champions, visit the RIPHI website.
