Pandemic preparedness and response in VUCA healthcare environments using an interprofessional framework: a scoping review

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed critical vulnerabilities in global healthcare systems while underscoring the vital role of interprofessional collaboration (IPC) in navigating volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environments. Collaboration among medical doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists—central to ward-based care—proved pivotal in managing rapidly evolving clinical protocols and surging patient demands. Objective: This scoping review aimed to map IPC strategies employed by medical doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists during the COVID-19 pandemic, assess their impact on pandemic preparedness and response, and identify opportunities for integrating these practices into health professional education to enhance VUCA readiness. Methods: Following Arksey and O'Malley’s methodological framework, a scoping review was conducted to systematically map existing literature on IPC during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comprehensive searches of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ERIC, and Google Scholar were performed using Boolean logic. Studies were eligible if they examined collaborative practices among healthcare professionals, with particular focus on medical doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists across varied healthcare settings. Two independent reviewers screened 760 records, achieving high inter-rater reliability (Cohen’s kappa = 0.87), resulting in 14 studies included in the final synthesis. Results: Five key IPC strategy themes emerged: (1) enhanced interprofessional communication, (2) role flexibility and boundary adaptation, (3) collaborative leadership development, (4) continuous interprofessional education and capacity-building, and (5) peer support mechanisms. Nursing appeared in 92.9% of studies, medicine in 71.4%, and physiotherapy in 21.4%. Collaborative teams demonstrated a 34% greater capacity to adapt care protocols and a 28% reduction in medical errors compared to less collaborative teams. A three-phase thematic framework was developed,tracing the evolution of IPC from pre-pandemic baseline conditions through crisis-activated competencies to future preparedness strategies. Conclusions: Interprofessional collaboration—especially among medical doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists—proved to be a core competency in managing the complexities of VUCA healthcare environmentsduring the pandemic. Despite these demonstrated benefits, only 23% of healthcare education programs include substantial interprofessional components. Embedding interprofessional communication, role clarity, and collaborative problem-solving into health curricula is essential for preparing professionals to meet future healthcare challenges. These findings offer an evidence-based foundation for transforming education and service delivery to support resilient, team-based care in crisis conditions.