Jose Rafols, EdD, OTD, MHSA, OTR/L; Stanley Paul PhD, MD, OTR/L
Education, Research, & Scholarship | Audience Level: Intermediate
OT and Nursing collaborative at UNCP yielded a joint project in Fall of 2025. It allowed the OT Program to teach groups of nursing students the basics of safe patient mobility. Forty-nine nursing students were briefed on patient handling, common transfers, body-mechanics and use of assistive ambulation equipment. Then students practiced patient transfers and use of assistive ambulation equipment. The collaborative venture fostered interdisciplinary exchange and assisted in developing tailor-made two-day training modules that promoted transfer skills attainment among first year nursing students. Students’ feedback during lab debriefings reported that they enjoyed the hands-on lab. Overall, the experience of this joint venture identified that there is ample opportunity within the College of Health Sciences to continue the collaboration between occupational therapy and nursing disciplines.