This PUNCh project, led by Hélène Givron, associate professor and educational coordinator in the Department of Psychology at the University of Namur, is designed to address educational needs in interprofessional training. The goal was to develop a fun, flexible tool that could be adapted for use in various contexts, in order to address a significant challenge in the field. 

The main objective of this workshop was to strengthen interprofessional communication and collaboration in the healthcare field. A multidisciplinary team was therefore formed, composed of representatives from various sectors: Catherine Magnette (Instructor, Department of Medicine), Romain Siriez (Educational Coordinator, Department of Pharmacy), and Laura Demarthe (Assistant, Department of Psychology), to bring together students from the Master’s in General Practice and the Master’s in Pharmaceutical Sciences at UNamur, as well as the Master’s in Nursing (Hénallux), to address these issues.

This educational tool draws on various skills essential to teamwork, such as active listening, the ability to clearly articulate ideas, task coordination, and collective decision-making. Each puzzle presented a challenge that required genuine cooperation among group members, as no solution could be found by working alone. 

Following the game phase, a debriefing session was held with all participants. This discussion aimed to reflect on the experience gained during the workshop and to encourage students to think about the concepts of collaboration and interprofessional communication in the healthcare context. The game served as a tool to illustrate certain cooperative scenarios, but also to highlight challenges related to coordination and information sharing. The debriefing thus facilitated a dialogue among students from different programs regarding the barriers and enablers of effective communication. Participants had the opportunity to share their feelings, compare their perspectives, and discuss strategies to promote better collaboration among healthcare professionals. 

The educational objectives of the workshop were clearly defined:

• Address the skills necessary for interprofessional collaboration, such as communication and collective decision-making.
• Identify the drivers and barriers to interprofessional collaboration.
• Contribute to improving the quality and safety of care through better coordination among professionals.

“I hope this experience will lead to a change in practice. The game gives you the tools to assert yourself, especially as a young doctor when you have to integrate into teams with more experienced colleagues. It helps you stand your ground and build self-confidence.” — Yorick, medical student 

“Based on the information we received, we expected an activity with exclusively ‘medical’ content. This unique experience takes us beyond the scope of typical role-playing scenarios.” - Margaux, medical student 

“I found this workshop to be very useful; it adds value and is very interesting. We never have simulations focused on collaboration. It would be interesting to incorporate this into the curriculum.” – Nursing student

This was a first for UNamur: for the first time, several residents of Château Vert made the trip to the Faculty of Medicine to meet students enrolled in the Master's program specializing in general medicine. The trip required a significant investment of time and energy on the part of the Château Vert teams and residents. "The residents made the effort to come to us. It is a rare gift to be able to talk directly with patients and their caregivers," says Catherine Magnette, general practitioner and organizer of the day. "Who better than the patient themselves, and possibly their close caregiver, can express their expectations of their general practitioner? It is about putting the patient back at the center by giving them a voice," she continues.

The day was structured around three workshops, offered as part of the academic curriculum for the Master's degree specializing in general medicine:

• "Dys" disorders
  : Understanding learning and communication difficulties and adapting medical practices.
• The specificities of medical care for people with disabilities
  To better understand patients' vulnerabilities and skills in order to individualize care. Certain pathologies or medical issues are specific to these patients and are rarely addressed in the basic curriculum.
• Meeting with the residents of Château Vert and their caregivers
  A moment of direct exchange, where students were able to ask questions, listen to life experiences, and hear what patients expect—or fear—in a medical consultation.

"What I expect from a doctor is that they put themselves in my shoes and understand my pain, even if I can't always express it very precisely." - Christelle, resident at Château Vert. 

"It's really important for doctors to be able to put themselves in their patients' shoes. For example, with my son, explaining the medical tests he's going to have to undergo by miming them beforehand on his cuddly toy is an approach that really works. It reassures him." - Audrey, mother of Arthur (9), resident at Château Vert. 

After hearing these testimonials, the students were able to ask questions and talk with the residents, their caregivers, and the supervisory teams. 

The educational objectives of this day were therefore multiple:

• Identify the medical, relational, and social specificities related to disability;
• Use this knowledge to improve patient care;
• To understand the role of those who support people with specific needs;
• Develop a patient-centered, respectful, and collaborative care model.

The aim of these internships is to raise medical students' awareness of these regions, in the hope that some of them will return to do their assistantships or even settle there permanently as GPs. This initial immersion in the field creates a concrete link with local realities and sparks a genuine return dynamic.

Organized by UNamur, this project is based on close collaboration with doctors based in the areas concerned, who will play a central role as tutors and partners in the field.

The proposal stands out for its "all-in-one" formula: students benefit from a supervised internship, accommodation on site, as well as organized transport when necessary. This scheme aims to remove any logistical obstacles that might discourage young people from going to train in these areas.

The first edition of this "all-in" internship took place during June 2025 in the commune of Florennes, with the active support of the local authorities. This pilot project marks an important step in validating the proposed model.

Other communes, such as Libin, Ohey and Bouillon (in collaboration with Santé Ardenne), have already expressed interest in hosting the program in 2026.

How long is the internship? How many students are doing this internship?

If this initiative is to take full shape, the support of the communes concerned is essential. The involvement of local authorities, particularly in providing housing and facilitating travel, is a prerequisite for the success and sustainability of this program.

UNamur therefore calls on the communes to commit themselves alongside us to this supportive and structuring approach for the future of the Belgian healthcare system.

This partnership involves the co-financing of an ambitious, multidisciplinary research project conducted by UNamur over a 4-year period. Objectives? To understand the various mechanisms contributing to the disparity in the supply of general practitioners in Wallonia, and to objectify shortages on a local scale.

This project contributes directly to the MC's commitment to improving access to healthcare. By supporting research, the MC helps to orient healthcare policies towards the real needs of territories. The approach is a valuable lever for strengthening an equitable and sustainable healthcare offer, in phase with the values of solidarity carried by the MC.

This project marks the first formal collaboration between UNamur and the MC, bringing UNamur's research to the attention of those working in the field and the general public. The Observatoire Universitaire en Médecine Rurale, which brings together general practitioners, sociologists and geographers, will benefit from the expertise and network of the MC to carry out its field surveys and applied research projects.

More specifically, the project has three specific objectives:

• Understand the mechanisms behind the disparity in the supply of general medicine in Wallonia, and in particular in the province of Namur.
• Create an index of the attractiveness of practice locations for young doctors.
• Evaluate the perception of accessibility to care in general medicine from the point of view of patients.

Expected results include the creation of specific indices and the formulation of recommendations to improve the situation in shortage areas. These results will be promoted via multiple channels: academic training at UNamur, the scientific community, the medical sector, politics, the general public.

The project will focus on three complementary phases:

1. Evolution of the GP profession in rural areas : This qualitative phase includes semi-directive interviews with GPs to understand the transformations of the profession and identify factors influencing the attractiveness of rural areas.
2. Attractiveness of practice locations for young doctors: An attractiveness index will be refined and implemented in a Geographic Information System (GIS) to assess locations conducive to the installation of young practitioners.
3. Accessibility to care for patients: A mixed analysis of quantitative and qualitative data will enable us to understand patients' perceptions of accessibility to care in rural areas.

The project therefore has the particularity of taking into account both the point of view of patients and healthcare providers in order to provide a 360° overview of the problem of the scarcity of supply in general practice, and in rural areas in particular.

This project extends two research projects already carried out as part of the OUMRu:

1. Rurality index for the Walloon Region: From December 2023 to April 2024, geographer Aliz Hevesi, under the direction of Catherine Linard (NARILIS-ILEE Institutes), created a rurality index at sub-municipal level, relevant for assessing situations of shortage at local level. This research also included work on the theoretical definition of an attractiveness index for young practitioners.
2. Perception of accessibility to care: From January to June 2025, sociologist Amélie Pierre (Institut Transitions), in collaboration with Dr. Dominique Henrion, coordinator of the OUMRu, is conducting a study to assess the perception of accessibility to general medical care in different regions, by interviewing a panel of 5.000 Belgian citizens via "The Social Study", as well as focus groups of patients in the provinces of Namur and Luxembourg.