Healthcare Working Issues - Essay Example

Interprofessional Working 3 Introduction In all kinds of health care setting, the patient’s well-being and recovery should be the ultimate goal. Health care experts and professional make up a team that is composed of different individuals who are proficient in their own fields of study. While the approach, belief and roles may vary in the health care system and health care plan, it is of paramount importance that efficient “team work, collaboration and communication is present across professional boundaries” to ensure that quality care is given at all costs (BMA, n.d.). In addition to this, the London Deanery (2007) pointed out that efficient health care work requires effective collaboration and interaction for good patient care. It moves on to say that poor teamwork skills in health care are contributory factors that causes negative occurrences in patient care, whereas effective teamwork produces more positive patient results. In relation to the above, the situation and cases of Florence and Janine were especially motivating and intriguing; especially on the part where Florence said that she was confused and did not know whom to trust. Likewise with Janine’s circumstances wherein she described a typical doctor-patient scenario that could have been avoided once the typical barriers of communication are overcome by both parties. While its true that there may be cases when going to the General Practitioner or GP requires a number of visits in order to get “satisfactory treatment”, practicing the proper decorum in every patient-doctor encounter is required and necessary to produce effective results. The working collaboration between health care professional to attain effective and patient-focused kind of care (Ross et al, 2005) requires crossing of boundaries and giving one hundred percent support to every team member. Even though the current changes and issues that surround professional identity and relationships between health care professional could create cases where the traditional professional identities and roles are no longer recommended. However, those involved in health care giving must work out their differences and negotiate, to be able to provide the needed care for a client or patient. In some instances, medical health practitioners need to adjust their roles and re-classify their actual profession as a health care giver. This could lead to difficulties between some practitioners regarding conflict of roles and professional boundaries. Any issues regarding misunderstanding could be due to how medical practitioners serve and work in the community. Generally, the work of a health care professional is a busy one and this leaves minute contact with others who are in the same profession. Thus the opportunity to personally get acquainted of know each other in order to develop an effective interprofessional relationship is nil. Interactions between health care workers are seldom subjected for any in-depth evaluation. The only time that due consideration for improvement on interpofessional relationship and communication happens is when problems or difficulties between professionals or co-workers arises or occurs in a single setting (Ross et al, 2005). In congruence to the foregoing, Hughes (2007) pointed out that interprofessional working faking the boundaries between different professions and trying to procure a general health care worker. It is more about developing professionals who have confidence in their skill of expertise along with that of their co-workers and who can work alongside anybody within the health care force in order to deliver the health care needs of patients and the community at large. Moreover, Headrick et al (n.d.) postulates that majority of health professionals tend to work independently even if they are working within a team. The hindrances laid out are fear of losing professional identity, different schedules and different professional routines. But it is important to consider that the improved health outcome of a patient lies within the hands of a single practitioner. The true improvements according to Headrick et al, are more likely to happen when health care professionals who provide a certain service are brought together to “share their different knowledge and experiences, agree what improvements they would like to see, test these practice and jointly learn from the results.” The quality of care given by professional should be based on the rights of patients which is supported by law and are upheld in court. Hence, According to NAHC (2006) the model patient bill of rights which is based on the patients rights and presently enforced by the law must encompass the following: a. The patients has the right to appropriate and professional care in accordance with physician orders. b. The patient has the right to receive reasonable continuity of care. c. The patient has the right to receive information necessary to give informed consent prior to the start of any treatment or procedure. d. The patient has the right to be advised of any change in the plan of care, before the change is made. e. The patient has the right to refuse treatment within the confines of the las and to be informed of the consequences of his or her action. f. The patient has the right to be informed of his or her rights under state law to formulate advanced directives. g. The patient has to\he right to have health care providers comply with advance directives in accordance with state law requirements. h. The patient has the right to voice grievances and suggest changes in service or staff without fear of restraint or discrimination. i. The patient has the right to be informed of what to do in the event of an emergency. Communication In communicating with patients, always take into consideration their own culture, beliefs and religion. For much of these are the focal point on whether they are willing to agree with what that doctor says and what should be done about their illness or impairment if any. Respect and professionalism at all times should be exercised, and that despite the differences of views on health care, the quality of care should be retained. Likewise consideration and empathy should always be employed without any forms of biases or favors that could cloud the performance of one’s duty. The communication process requires listening and talking both ways. The doctor should take time to listen to what the patient has to say. This is very important since the diagnosis and care or treatment plan will depend on this. Talking would involve explaining thoroughly why such action or prescription is required. This is what should have been done regarding the cases of Florence and Janine. The health care team in Florence’s case should have explained to her the reason why her son was diagnosed to have normal hearing after tests were done when she brought him to the local hospital. It is imperative at this point that the mother, Florence in this case, should have been made aware of facts on how to know if her son has a hearing problem or not. The invitations being sent out by the hospital may be seen as a way of trying to get the mother to bring back her son so further tests could be done in order to come up with a more definite diagnosis. As for Janine’s case, since she was not well versed with the English language the least thing that the medical team or the General Practitioner should have done was to look for somebody who could speak her national language within the staff or team of medical workers present. If the search proves futile, then the GP should have explained the situation as simply as he could. Janine should have been informed that the first medicine given for her baby may or may not work as expected because medicines react differently with different individuals. And that a second opinion is always an option if the first diagnosis or treatment did not work as expected. Doctors and other health professionals, like nurses, need to understand the dilemmas of their patients. It is also critical for patients to meet them halfway and ask questions which the doctor should answer in simple layman’s language and terms. The connotation that the doctor in unapproachable has exactly no basis of support. All members of the medical health care team are approachable. So it is significant to inform patients that if they do not understand or are in doubt to speak out and voice their concerns. Reflection Ross, et al (2008) stresses that the world of interprofessional working relationships require: 1) Teamwork - working with people who have different ideologies, culture and personality is very challenging and this goes true for any kind of team or organization like the medical profession where every member has his or her own field of specialty that is valuable to the group. It is wise to remember that the team is made up of several people and not just one individual who can make the decision. Everyone on the team should learn to set aside their differences, if they have any, and to compensate for the flaws of the other team members. Having this kind of attitude makes a good team player and would generally result to having a smooth flow and continuity of professional work. 2) Recognition and Respect for Expertise - as a team player, everyone must learn to respect the ability of their peers and co-workers. It is not advisable to be threatened by the talent and knowledge others have because every individual or person also have their own abilities and talents that others do not have and should be respected at all cost. Having confidence in your abilities and that of others will help in doing a good performance at work. 3) Beyond the Call of Duty - members of the health care team must be willing to expend extra effort and time or go for the “extra mile” whenever the situation calls for it. The performance of one’s duties should not be confined within the four corners of the hospital or clinic but should be disseminated in unexpected circumstances. Whereas crossing the boundaries to be able to serve others better is considered a noble deed. Moreover, Ferguson (2006) stressed that teamwork may involve the performance of individual team members. Because while the tasks may be varied it generally involves some kind of collective goal. And since the task are generally collective, the outcome of everybodys accomplishment is efficient because everyone feels that his or her perspective has been properly accounted for. Conclusion The call for interprofessional work requires that all health care workers be they doctors, radiologist, technicians, nurses, etc must learn to work together in a common environment. This common ground is where each member of the health must show his or her expertise and professionalism that contributes to the rounded care provided by the whole team. In any work setting, there could be instances of disagreements because of the roles that are assumed and played out by the members. Proper communication is the key in dealing with these kinds of problems and should these difficulties arise it is important to properly identify the role of each person in the team. Largely, the decision to implement a particular care or technique must be based on the initial assessment of the entire team of health professionals. Coming up with decisions requires the opinions of everyone, which must be given honestly based on the condition and response of the patient to early conducted treatments, observations and tests. Irregardless of the team’s internal problems, the performance of care given must be of high quality and must not be affected with any personal grievance. Evers (n.d.) suggests that good communication skills must include the following: 1. Acknowledging the verbal and non-verbal communication of others. 2. Rephrasing thoughts by repeating what was said to insure that both parties understood it on the same level. 3. Giving examples to communicate your ideas clearly. 4. Use good diction by speaking clearly and distinctly. 5. Maintaining a positive attitude – always try to use positive sentence structures. 6. Listening actively and not just hearing what was said without understanding. 7. Interpret. Read between the lines since other may have a hard time expressing themselves. 8. Share ideas since it could be conceive as a personal effort to relate to others. 9. Build a relationship that is based on trust to make others more at ease in talking with you. 10. Build a connection. Fins a common ground of interest so you could have a good conversation. It is also essential to observe the rights of the patient and remember them by heart. All the rights which were briefly mentioned in the preceding paragraphs must be observed with critical consideration and care. Violation of said rights will not only affect a few individuals but will likewise affect the whole health care organization due to bad publicity if ever a case was brought to court. Moreover, it could be said that good communication is the foundation of good relationships, be it personal or career wise. In the medical or health setting it is imperative that all the members of the health team communicate freely with each other in order to perform efficiently. Good communication is also necessary between the professional health worker and the patient, as this will address the necessary issues that need to be worked out. Patients must be given the chance to voice out their concerns regarding the overall health care plan they are currently receiving. The significance of this is – the current care plan may not be effective and needs to be improved to see changes and a positive response from the patient. Although nothing could really be considered as perfect, the performance of one’s duty and responsibilities should be done to the best of his or her ability. Proper execution of the job requires in depth knowledge and proper experience. Having good knowledge requires the ability to perform the job well with little supervision, whereas proper experience involves having been able to handle cases first hand among with other health professionals. These two factors when combined will make a health worker or health professional adept at his field of expertise. Having factual knowledge alone without the required experience is insufficient to be able to deliver a high quality of job satisfaction, and will in no doubt affect the performance of the whole team. Hence it is advisable for professional health care workers to continuously upgrade themselves with seminars and trainings. It is quite unfortunate sometimes that patients do not truly understand what is going on and they just do what the doctor or nurse tells them to do without actually knowing why. First of all, patients go and have themselves checked by a doctor because they feel something that is not physically normal. Before the patient actually sees the doctor for any diagnosis and prescriptions, they usually passed by the nurse who take down all the necessary data and information. At this stage alone, the nurse or any professional health worker assigned to take down such information must have taken at least all the major information needed for the doctor to assess the problem. Thus, when its time for the doctor and the patient to meet, the data given must be able to provide the necessary facts about the patient’s condition, and the doctor must be able to give an accurate diagnosis. However there are times when a patient cannot actually give accurate information regarding his current bill of health probably due to language and cultural barriers. At this point, communication will be quite difficult if the patient is unable to express his or her concerns. The health care team could have two options: the first one is to lay it out as simply as they could for the patient, by speaking slowly and using general or layman’s terms. The second option would be to make a home follow-up on the patient. This way, the health care professionals will be able to ascertain whether the advise or treatment was received positively and how the patient is responding to the prescribed medicines. Indeed, communication does pose a barrier and while there may be a lot of other issues that needs to be addressed accordingly with regards to interprofessional working – good teamwork and a positive attitude could be a strong foundation for the delivery of quality and efficient health care. In addition, interprofessional working according to Hughes (2007) needs effective leadership as the core of any interprofessional workforce. A strong leadership process needs to have shared values and vision. It should involve clarity of direction, roles and responsibilities within the team. Aside from the fact that it necessitates effective feedback and the establishment of strong relationships between the members in order to sustain and develop a phenomenal workforce to give quality care for the needs of each individual patient. And as per Headrick, et al (n.d.) the common characteristics which could be found among health professionals is the need to learn and to meet the needs of their patients. This common ground encourages individual health professionals to work alongside their peers in order to share concrete experiences and test their concepts within new grounds. While the improvement of the clients they serve together is an effective motivator that draws them to work closely as a team irregardless of any professional differences. The efficient working collaboration of health care professionals always involves risks, as pointed out the Jones Maidment Wilson Solicitors (2006). Thus, if a patient is aware and was informed of the risk involved as a result of treatment or surgery then it could be considered that the medical practitioner is not at fault and a claim for compensation is unlikely. However, in order to prove that a malpractice or negligence did not happen the practitioner should have evidence showing that he or she acted in the same way that a substantial body of medical profession would have acted. Likewise if there are more than one possible treatment, it may not be negligence if the one used failed and another succeeded. In most cases, it has to be duly proved the illness or any possible deterioration of the patient was caused by an erroneous treatment. In view of all this, the Department of Health (2001) advises that the patient before giving consent on a possible treatment or treatments must ask what the benefits are, the risks involved, and what if the treatment offered was refused, what will happen? If the person asking for consent to the treatment cannot justly answer these questions then request for someone with professional authority to talk with regarding these concerns. References Bainbridge, L. (n.d.). Division of Interprofessional Education: The College of Health Disciplines. Part IX Faculties, Colleges, and Schools, p.317. BMA. (2006). Interprofessional Education: Caring for the NHS at 60, p.1. Department of Health. (2001). “What You Need to Know Before Giving Consent?”: Crown Copyright, Produced by the Department of Health, p.4. Doenges, M., and Moorhouse, M.F. (2000). Nurses Pocket Guide: Diagnosis, Interventions and Rationales. Seventh Edition, F.A. Davis Company. Evers, Jan. (n.d.). Communicating at Work: Facilitating Good Communication, pp. 1-2. Ferguson, Dianne L. (2006). Working Together: Groupwork, Team work and Collaborative Work Among Teachers: University of Oregon, NIUSI pp. 6-7. Headrick, L.N., Wilcock, P.M., Batalden, P.B. (n.d.) Interprofessional working and Continuing Medical Education: British Medical Journal (BMJ) PMCID: PMC1112732, pp. 4-5. Hughes, Lisa. (2007) Creating an Interprofessional Workforce: An Education and Training for Health and Social Care in England. Jones Maidment Wilson Solicitors. (2006). Clinical Negligence Information UK: Bryom St., Manchester. p.1. London Deary. (2007). Interprofessional Team Working: Stewart House, 32 Russel Square, London WCIB 5DN, p.14. NAHC. (2006). “What Are My Rights as A Patient?”: How to use a Home Care provider, 228 Seventh Street, SE Washington, DC 20003 pp. 1-2. Ross, A., King, N., Firth, J. (2005) Interprofessional Relationships and Collaborative Working: Encouraging Reflective Practice: The Online Journal Issues in Nursing. Volume10 - 2005, pp.7-10. Sanderson, Toni. (2007). Learning in Practice, An Interprofessional learning workshop on CAIPE (NHS). October Bulletin Issue 28, ISSN:1350-9160, p.25. Read More