WSU Applebaum faculty members Dr. Aline Saad, PharmD, Interprofessional Education Coordinator and Associate Clinical Professor of Pharmacy Practice, and Dr. Insaf Mohammad, PharmD, BCACP, Assistant Clinical Professor of Pharmacy Practice, launched a Blue Cross Blue Shield grant-funded project to implement a hypertension quality-improvement project that emphasizes intentional interprofessional experiential education. The project is being launched in the Corewell Schaefer Internal Medicine Clinic, the practice site of Mohammad, who has a shared clinical appointment as an ambulatory care pharmacist specialist and is also the Director of Quality Improvement and Scholarship at the site. 

“This project builds upon an environment that is already rich with interprofessional collaboration among trainees, but structures it such that positive clinical outcomes can be demonstrated for patients with uncontrolled hypertension," said Mohammad. "It focuses on highlighting the outstanding care our trainees can provide when they work as leaders in the interprofessional team.” 

The launch of the project was also made possible thanks to Mohammad’s PGY1 Pharmacy Practice resident, Dr. Sara Baghdadi, and her two LAPP students, Ze’Nae Williams and Reemah Khallouf. 

The project started with an engaging interprofessional orientation session (pictured above) for 33 medical residents, four pharmacy residents and six LAPP students, as well as medical faculty members at Corewell Health Hospital, Dearborn. 

“During the session, we focused on ensuring our health professionals were equipped to be fully team-ready,” Saad said. “We introduced TEAMSTEPPS to build essential teamwork skills and integrated Clifton’s StrengthsFinder to optimize each team member’s unique contributions to patient care. We also provided a thorough overview of the grant’s objectives, clarified roles within the team, and walked through our assessment tools. To top it off, we reviewed case vignettes on hypertension management in light of the latest guidelines.”

Specific aims of the BCBS Grant include:

1. To implement an intentional interprofessional experiential education hypertension program in an outpatient internal medicine clinic. 
2. To achieve reduced mean office and home blood pressures values for patients with uncontrolled hypertension.
3. To demonstrate patient and interprofessional trainee satisfaction with interprofessional collaboration utilizing validated assessment tools. 

Stay tuned for updates and read more about IPE efforts at WSU Applebaum.

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The Doctor of Pharmacy program at Wayne State University is a four-year curriculum in the heart of Detroit. Approximately 100 students are enrolled in each year of the program. WSU Applebaum information meetings for prospective students take place at 6 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month. The application process or the Doctor of Pharmacy program begins each July.

An anchor in urban health care

The Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is built on more than 100 years of tradition and innovation in the heart of Detroit. We have grown deep roots in our city, harnessing its powerhouse hospital systems and community service organizations as vibrant, real-world training grounds for students, with an ongoing focus on social justice in health care. And our research at all levels – from undergraduates to veteran faculty members – translates into creative solutions for healthier communities.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering approximately 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 24,000 students.