HHP helps guide success of IPE event

Students in kinesiology and social work, joined by Drs. Bhibha Das and Kelley Reinsmith-Jones as faculty leaders, were active and engaged at a campus-wide interprofessional education event featuring hundreds of participants.

It was the second annual IPE of its kind, Keepers of the House, held Sept. 22-23 on ECU’s Health Sciences Campus in collaboration with ECU housekeepers and ECU Health. Das facilitated the Keepers of the House event and actively engaged with students, ECU Health EVS staff and ECU housekeeping staff to expand participants’ understanding of the healthcare team.

Students fill one of the ballrooms at East Carolina Heart Institute. (Ronnie Woodward)

More than 500 students completed the post-evaluation survey, including 93% reporting the Keepers of the House event was impactful and 91% strongly agreed interprofessional education (learning with, from and about other healthcare professional students) is important to their future career. One student said: “I had a blast. This one was special. I loved seeing people who hardly ever get recognition receive that recognition.”

Longtime ECU housekeeper Linda Spell was one of the panelists who enthusiastically answered questions from students and guests. She has worked in various areas on Health Sciences Campus, including Brody School of Medicine and College of Nursing, and is an advocate for the influence of bringing positive energy to other people.

“I love the job,” Spell said. “The job is so rewarding. When you see somebody who is having a good day and you can put a smile on somebody’s face, you can do that job for 8 hours. Maybe there’s water on the mirror in a bathroom when I walk in and I saw they wiped it off. I go out and say thank you so much for doing that. I appreciate that and taking the time for it. It is such a joy to see someone come in and appreciate what you are doing.”

The IPE event committee included faculty from Brody, HHP, CON, College of Allied Health Sciences and the School of Dental Medicine, led by Dr. Christine Lysaght from the Department of Physical Therapy. Das represented the Department of Kinesiology and Reinsmith-Jones the School of Social Work.

“Housekeepers play an integral role in keeping our healing spaces – hospital rooms, clinic spaces, and so forth – clean and safe,” Das said. “I am so grateful to be part of the Keepers of the House professional development opportunity where our future healthcare professionals, from physicians to social workers, learned more about our housekeepers’ experiences in these spaces and how they contribute to the mission of their organizations. The labor, often invisible, is integral to all that we do.”

A question is asked during the panelist portion of the event.