The Healing Spaces project goes beyond the classroom, offering both groups valuable hands-on experience while illustrating the impact of interdisciplinary collaboration. 

“This project has been a labor of love, yielding invaluable results in the areas of interprofessional learning and collaboration across disciplines,” said Mitchell. “Over the years, I have incorporated feedback from our alumni and current students to enhance the student experience and refine learning outcomes.”

By bringing together their expertise in human development, family science and interior architecture, students learn to merge their insights into thoughtful designs.

“At this stage of learning, interprofessional collaboration allows students from both human development and family science and interior architecture design groups to benefit from merging their expertise,” Mitchell explained. “Together, they develop a plan and iterate on the outcomes, culminating in both physical and digital representations of health care spaces designed to foster innovative environments for children, youth and families.”