Interprofessional education: an overview of key developments in the past three decades

OBJECTIVE: This paper provides an overview of key developments of interprofessional education (IPE) in relation to its evolution over the past 30 years. METHODS: A narrative review of the salient IPE literature was undertaken to generate key source materials for this paper. RESULTS: Results are presented in four sections that focus on describing and discussing: the emergence of IPE, different learning/teaching approaches; the evidence base for IPE; organizational elements. In addition, to help illustrate these developments, we offer a case example of the work currently being undertaken at our own institution, with a focus on how various IPE developments have been integrated into our organizational priorities. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results presented, a series of key conclusions for the future development and implications of IPE are outlined.