[pictured above: Darlene Hubley (right) receiving the Ivy Oandasan Leadership Award from Ivy Oandasan (Left)]

Each year, CACHE awards educators, preceptors, leaders, students, etc. who have demonstrated dedication and engagement in interprofessional collaboration, education and practice. The awards not only celebrate the outstanding achievements of these dedicated professionals but also recognizes their unwavering commitment to advancing interprofessional collaboration in health & social care and education.

“It was incredible to see Darlene Hubley receive the award of merit which recognizes her outstanding leadership, teaching and innovation in education across the UofT (University of Toronto) and TAHSN community,” says Golda Milo-Manson, vice president, medicine and academic affairs at Holland Bloorview. "We are immensely proud of Darlene for receiving the award. Her passion for interprofessional education and her ability to create meaningful, collaborative experiences for our healthcare professionals have had a profound impact on our organization and the children and families we serve." CONGRATULATIONS Darlene!

Darlene is honoured to be this year’s winner of the award. We interviewed her about the significance of the award:

Congratulations on winning the prestigious Ivy Oandasan Leadership Award for Outstanding Leadership in Advancing Interprofessional Education! How do you feel about being recognized and what does this award mean to you?

I am honoured to be this year’s recipient of the award and would like to express my gratitude for the opportunity to work in health professions education with so many wonderful members of the Holland Bloorview community and the Centre for Advancing Collaborative Healthcare & Education (CACHE).

How did you became interested in interprofessional education?

I was invited to join preliminary conversations within the Toronto Academic Health Sciences Network (TAHSN) and with the University of Toronto about interest in ways to enhance collaborative care through interprofessional learning. In 2007, I was asked to lead a pilot project to bring the IPE structured clinical placement model that Lynne Sinclair was leading at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute to Holland Bloorview. The pilot was successful and contributed to building formal IPE programs in hospitals across the city.

The value of collaborative care was evident to me in my clinical experience as an OT in the Integrated Education and Therapy program and in the Student Support Services. Both embraced a collaborative team model of care and were shining examples of healthy teams, authentic client and family partnership and meaningful collaboration across systems. Given this experience, I was excited to develop IPE and be more purposeful about teaching collaborative care.

This award recognizes and honors excellence in interprofessional education and leadership. What does leadership mean to you in the context of advancing interprofessional education and in your role at Holland Bloorview?

To me, leadership in IPE is about creating opportunities for interpersonal connections and nurturing growth towards a more compassionate and collaborative healthcare system, with optimism.

Could you share a specific experience where your leadership in interprofessional education made a significant impact?

Most recently I have been nurturing the growth of several student led environments (SLEs). SLEs are an innovative model of interprofessional learning that foster student leadership to meet health system needs. I help build and support our robust faculty teams in the OnTrack cluster of SLEs.

What is your greatest motivation in your work at Holland Bloorview and in your effort to advance Interprofessional Education?

I am always encouraged by the energy and passion that students in the health professions bring to interprofessional learning.

In your experience, what are the most significant challenges faced in advancing interprofessional education, and how have you overcome these challenges?

The logistics of finding the right time and place for IPE is a constant challenge however, the shift to virtual meetings has facilitated connection. And moving forward we will likely offer a range of in-person, hybrid or virtual planning and educational events.

What outcomes or achievements are you most proud of in your efforts to advance interprofessional education?

I am very proud of how we have partnered with Client and Family Integrated Care to develop and deliver IPE. For many years we have had youth, youth facilitators, family leaders and family as faculty as IPE designers and facilitators. Students always express how meaningful our IPE activities are because of the authentic participation of people with lived experience.

What advice do you have for aspiring leaders in the field of interprofessional education?

Join in! Some of the future opportunities for IPE include deepening community partnership and highlighting collaboration across systems.

Click here to learn more about our Interprofessional education programme.

To learn more about the awards, go to CACHE website.