Tran earns second in CLARION National Case Competition
The CLARION National Case Competition brings together student teams from across the country to solve complex, real-world health challenges through collaborative solutions.
Vivian Tran, third-year DDS student at UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry, earned second place at the 2025 CLARION National Case Competition as part of her interprofessional student team from across different UTHealth Houston institutions.
The national event, hosted annually by the University of Minnesota, brings together student teams from across the country to solve complex, real-world health challenges through collaborative solutions.
The team, sponsored by the UTHealth Houston Center for Interprofessional Collaboration and representing three UTHealth Houston schools, developed a strategic three-year climate resilience plan addressing the health impacts of air quality, earning praise for their innovative and system-level approach.
The team was guided by a trio of interprofessional coaches: Renee Johnson, MD, MPH; Tiffany Cunningham, RN; and Rachel Jantea, MD, MS.
“This is months’ worth of work,” said Elda Ramirez, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, co-director of the Center for Interprofessional Collaboration, as well as assistant dean for Strategic Initiatives and Community Engagement and Dorothy T. Nicholson Distinguished Professor at Cizik School of Nursing at UTHealth Houston. “To be that competitive at the national level is huge. These students are already working like professionals, developing real solutions to global issues.”
Ramirez highlighted the significance of students from different health disciplines coming together to tackle a shared challenge.
“It’s the epitome of what our center stands for,” Ramirez said. “When you have students and coaches from different backgrounds, they bring new ideas and ways of thinking. Alone, they’re strong, but together, they’re powerful.”
Each year, the Center for Interprofessional Collaboration sponsors a student team for the CLARION competition, reinforcing its mission to foster interprofessional excellence and prepare students to lead collaboratively in today’s health care environment.
