FDI champions interprofessional education and collaboration as a key strategy to strengthening health systems and improving access to care. We work with the World Health Professions Alliance (WHPA), which brings together organizations representing the world’s dentists, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, and physicians, and speaks for more than 34 million healthcare professionals in more than 130 countries to promote interprofessional collaborative practice (ICP). The WHPA works to improve global health and the quality of patient care and facilitates collaboration among the health professions and major stakeholders.

ICP between dentists and other healthcare professionals is beneficial to patients, particularly in underserved areas, where access to specialist physicians may be limited. FDI works with WHPA to call on governments to fund structures that support ICP and address health inequalities, which are a major concern even for developed countries. We work to ensure that health systems around the world enable ICP and educational systems promote shared learning. Effective collaboration between different professions can lead to improved access to services, more user involvement in decision-making, more responsive services, better use of resources, reduced incidence of disability, and increased job satisfaction of health professionals.