Interdisciplinary teaching offers rich opportunities for students to build the skills needed for real-world, team-based care. In healthcare, nursing and social work professionals often work closely to meet the complex needs of patients and families. Yet, most undergraduate curricula do not include structured opportunities to learn with, from, and about each other’s discipline.

To address this gap, nursing and social work faculty designed a low-fidelity simulation activity centered on child abuse. This 2.5-hour session was held in conjunction with National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Upper-level social work and pediatric nursing students were divided into nine interdisciplinary groups.
Students completed pre-session readings and began the day with a brief didactic overview of child abuse indicators and mandatory reporting laws. They then observed a live simulation of a child and parent presenting to the emergency department with signs suggestive of abuse. Afterward, in their small groups, students discussed guided reflection questions and role-played a call to Child Protective Services.

Student feedback highlighted that the experience enhanced their understanding of both their own and each other’s professional roles, as well as their legal and ethical responsibilities in child abuse reporting. Faculty noted high engagement and meaningful cross-disciplinary dialogue. This collaborative simulation proved to be a valuable, practice-informed approach to building interdisciplinary teamwork and communication among undergraduate nursing and social work students.