Interprofessional Education (IPE) has been recognized by various international professional societies (e.g. World Health Organization and Institute of Medicine) and accreditation organizations as foundational to achieving safe, high quality, accessible, patient-centered care. An Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) formed in 2010 to develop common domains and again in 2011 to define domain competencies for interprofessional education.

Furthermore, in 2012 the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) and the National League for Nursing (NLN), supported in part by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, collaborated to explore the advancement of IPE and interprofessional practice (IPP) via the instrument of healthcare simulation using the domains and competencies developed by IPEC. As a third national consensus collaborative, in 2012 the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) and the National League for Nursing’s (NLN) symposium–supported in part by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation–on interprofessional education and healthcare simulation explored the use of simulation as an instrument for advancing interprofessional education (IPE) and interprofessional practice (IPP) using the domains and competencies developed by IPEC.

Establishing simulation as an effective vehicle for IPE, the recommendations and proceedings detailed here represent the consensus of an interprofessional panel composed of 29 leaders representing 27 key healthcare organizations and a summary of the discussions and findings of a 76 session symposium (out of 129 submitted abstracts) with a total of 454 registered attendees. The report articulates agreement that simulation is a powerful tool that should be leveraged in IPE. The dialogue describes the current science of simulation for IPE and a future for this type of quality healthcare education that can be attained through collaborations and research. This report includes: a description of current models for the use of healthcare simulation to enhance interprofessional education (IPE) for healthcare professionals (including strengths and weaknesses); identification of gaps in knowledge related to the use of simulation to enhance IPE; recommendations on how to address challenges and barriers to its use; and description of opportunities for further collaborations and research.