BACKGROUND

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are derived from the United Nations to end poverty and hunger, improving health and education, making cities more sustainable, combating climate change, and protecting oceans and forests. The SDGs are supposed to be achieved by 2030. Despite many efforts around the world to achieve the SDGs, there are a number of areas where progress remains slow. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that there is inequality health status and quality of care in every region of Asia-Pacific. It happens because of differences in health care resources, utilization and access to reviews some of the inputs, outputs and outcomes of health care systems.

The solution can be done through interprofessional education (IPE) and collaborative practice (CP). It can play a significant role in mitigating many challenges faced by health systems around the world. Collaborative practice has been identified as a promising means of strengthening health systems and improving health outcomes. Such collaboration is increasingly regarded as important for health systems worldwide to meet complex health needs given the limited human and financial resources (Mickan et al. 2010; Reeves et al. 2009).

Countries in the Asia-Pasific region are diverse, collaborative practice strategies must be considered according to local needs and challenges. In some regions, this may mean that collaborative, team-based approaches to care are driven by efforts to promote patient safety (Borrill and West, 2002), maximize limited health resources, move care from acute to primary care settings or encourage greater integrated working (Ham, 2008). Regardless of the context in which policy-makers choose to introduce collaborative practice, research evidence and experience have demonstrated that a team-based approach to health-care delivery maximizes the strengths and skills of each contributing health worker.

Indonesian Young Health Professionals’ Society (IYHPS) in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS) intends to conduct activities 1 st Asia-Pacific Interprofessional Education and Collaboration Conference (APIPEC Conference). The activity aims to lay foundation for interprofessional education and collaboration (IPEC) development in Asia-Pacific region by strengthening stakeholders’ engagement through experience sharing from world experts and regional IPEC champions.

This conference will generate the blueprint and plan of action for developing National IPEC Centre in Indonesia, guidelines to establish and develop IPE curriculum in National and Asia-Pacific context, an IPEC research roadmap and community of Asia-Pacific researcher, guideline and roadmap of Interprofessional Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses and catalogue of innovative programs based on patient-centred collaborative care service in primary to tertiary care setting.