From AI to Universal Design, five proposals involving nursing faculty have received funding from the 2025/26 Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF). Congratulations to all!
February 21, 2025
The Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) was created in 1991 to enrich student learning by supporting innovative and effective educational enhancements. It is financed entirely by a portion of tuition paid by UBC Vancouver students. Each year, the Office of the Provost invites all UBC Vancouver Faculties and Colleges to apply for TLEF funding for initiatives that will improve student learning experiences at the university.
This year's TLEF awardees include:
Ashley Scott
$49,102
This project will implement an AI-driven Virtual Reality (VR) simulation tool in the Nurse Practitioner program at UBC Vancouver, providing an immersive and accessible platform for students to develop critical clinical skills required for them to excel in their academic program, and the workplace. Modeled after Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), the VR simulation will allow students to practice patient consultations, hone diagnostic abilities, and receive real-time feedback in a realistic, controlled environment. By integrating a Large Language Model into VR simulations, we aim to enhance students' confidence, communication skills, and readiness for real-world consultations. This project supports experiential learning by offering flexible, repeatable practice opportunities that meet diverse student needs, fostering a more inclusive and effective approach to clinical education. If successful, this innovative tool will be fully integrated into the NP curriculum, positioning UBC as a leader in using VR technology to advance practical learning in healthcare education.
Team Members:
Ashley Scott, Associate Professor of Teaching, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Chandell Kelly, MHLP Student, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science / Clinical Nurse Educator, Providence Healthcare Research Institute
Shannon Rooney, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science / Family Nurse Practitioner
Saeed Dyanatkar, Executive Producer / Sr. Manager, UBC Studios and Emerging Media Lab
Nassim Adhami
$46,424
Inclusive Excellence: Bringing Universal Design for Learning into Undergraduate Nursing Education
Postsecondary institutions within British Columbia are seeing an increase in the number of students with neurodiversity and/or learning disabilities. Programs ought to create learning environments where students with neurodiversity and/or learning disabilities are supported to achieve their highest capacity for learning. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching and learning that fosters inclusive environments that support all learners, including those with neurodiverse needs, to thrive and succeed.
This collaborative project draws on UDL’s three key principles of multiple means of engagement, representation, and expression, to develop pre-lecture preparatory learning modules for three undergraduate nursing courses. Through this project we aim to:
- increase the integration of UDL across UBC’s undergraduate nursing program;
- build capacity for nursing faculty to develop skills and knowledge in UDL; and
- build best practices standards of how UDL can be incorporated into health professions education beyond nursing.
Team Members:
Nassim Adhami, Lecturer / Assistant Professor of Teaching, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Angela Russolillo, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Trevor Goodyear, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Saima Hirani, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Scott Ramsay, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Manon Ranger, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Melanie Guindon, Lecturer, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Jennifer Auxier, Assistant Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Elisabeth Bailey, Associate Professor of Teaching / Associate Director, Undergraduate Programs / UBC Universal Design for Learning Fellow, Faculty of Applied Science
Carla Ferreira, Associate Professor of Teaching / Academic Advisor, Undergraduate Programs / UBC Universal Design for Learning Fellow, Faculty of Applied Science
et al.
Elisabeth Bailey
$38,452
Self & Collective Care for Nursing Students: Development of a Train-the-Trainer Initiative
This project will enhance sustainability and fidelity of delivery of the Self & Collective Care Series, a set of modules delivered through the UBC-Vancouver Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. This series of modules is designed to support student wellbeing and resilience, reflective practice, and belonging. The goals of this small TLEF project include developing train-the-trainer materials (e.g. facilitation guides, presentation materials, training videos), creating an online platform for these resources, and evaluating the efficacy and impact of this facilitator training program on quality of delivery and student learning.
The long-term goal is to expand this Series across UBC programs, particularly in high-intensity fields such as health professional programs, among others. Our project aligns with TLEF criteria by focusing on supporting student resilience and academic success through social connection and skill development; it has been developed with student input throughout.
Team Members:
Elisabeth Bailey, Associate Professor of Teaching, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Nassim Adhami, Lecturer, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Project Advisory Committee:
Carla Ferreira, Associate Professor of Teaching, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Sheryl Marie Zentner, Adjunct Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Sabrina Gill, Adjunct Professor, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Christopher Charles, BSN Student, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
Julia Tipping
Project #1
$24,983
Since COVID, virtual care (VC) became integral to healthcare service delivery, facilitating interprofessional collaboration for team-based patient-centred care. Universities must support students to learn the most up-to-date VC skills; instructors can benefit from educational interventions that incorporate perspectives from health professions, patients, and organizations offering interprofessional VC services. UBC Health’s Integrated Curriculum spans 14 health professional programs covering topics fostering interprofessional learning for team-based care. Existing IC health informatics modules were created pre-COVID without practicum opportunities. Given 40% of student learning occurs in clinical placements, integrating this is crucial. This project engages faculty, students, and patients to co-design VC educational interventions at UBC/UBCO to align with interprofessional clinical teaching environments and ensure the integration of VC and collaborative competencies. This project will result in a range of educational resources including an online module incorporating gamification and practicums to prepare health professional students for interprofessional VC collaboration matching health system needs.
Co-Leads:
Kendall Ho, Professor, Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine
Julie Tipping, Lecturer, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
et al
Project #2
$27,500
Building deep AI-integrated pedagogy using the aEHR
Cases are a foundational component of health education, providing simulated learning for students to navigate complex care situations. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) offers instructors a safe and efficient way to create new cases, add AI-chat, minimize human biases, and increase case diversity. The goal of this project is to build two AI-enabled tools embedded in the Academic Electronic Health Record (aEHR): a case generator and a patient chatbot.
A case generator will allow instructors near-instant development of cases according to desired parameters (e.g. complexity, length, clinical features), while a patient chatbot brings a realistic patient-voice into the learning activity for students.
The aEHR is a free-to-use patient chart tool currently used at UBC for case-based learning. The AI infrastructure will include two new databases connected to the aEHR: a large language model (the AI) and a retrieval augmentation generation (RAG) database (the sensitive instructor-specific teaching material).
Team Members:
Jason Min, Associate Professor of Teaching, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Julie Tipping, Lecturer, Nursing, Faculty of Applied Science
et al.