CPR to the Rescue! An Interprofessional Pilot Program: Cultivating Practices for Resilience (CPR) Camp

Purpose/Objectives The hCATS (health Colleges Advancing Team Skills) to CPR (Cultivating Practices for Resilience) Camp was an interprofessional pilot program to promote resilience, introduce strategies for coping with stress, cultivate compassion, and promote work-life balance to prevent burnout among health profession students, faculty, and healthcare professionals who team to provide patient care. Program Description The University of Kentucky (UK) College of Nursing received funding to partner with the UK Center for Interprofessional Health Education for immersive weekend activities utilizing KORU and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction models, conducted by certified UK faculty experts in self-stewardship techniques such as mindfulness practices. Outcomes Thirty-nine participants from 7 UK colleges and UK HealthCare participated in 4 distinct CPR Camps, completed program assessments, and created team projects. Mean scores from each cohort significantly increased in a retrospective pre/post analysis of student perception of knowledge in all of the following categories: (1) habits and practices for resilient people, (2) strategies for building resilience and preventing/coping with stress/burnout in self and others, and (3) work-life balance (with the exception of cohort 4, for work-life balance). Students indicated on open-response items specific strategies they were willing to adopt going forward. These outcomes met our objectives for developing participants' understanding of resilience practices and adopting useful stress reduction practices. Planning and implementation of team projects successfully brought different professions together to advance learning in resilience. Conclusion The CPR Camp initiative is an effective model for promoting and sustaining resilience-building strategies among health profession students. Similar programming conducted and/or attended by academic and/or health system leaders, such as clinical nurse specialists, can help cultivate practices for resilience among the members of the interprofessional workforce, enabling teams to better cope with stress, prevent burnout, and ultimately improve team-based care delivery for patients and their families.