Communication within a Team: Affect Collaborative Working Strategies in Modern Healthcare Systems - Essay Example

How Communication within an Inter-Professional Team Could Affect Collaborative Working Strategies Effective Communication to include Verbal and Nonverbal, Active Listening In modern healthcare systems, delivery processes comprise numerous patient handoffs and channels among hundreds of mental health nurses with different levels of occupational and educational indoctrination. For example, in the course of a 2-day stay in a mental health hospital, a patient might interact with 30 different employees, including nurses, doctors, technicians, among others (Beebe and Mottet, 2013:27). Amidst all these interactions, such as gestures, eye contact, emails, telephone conversations etc., communication may not always be as straightforward as expected. Sometimes, patients cannot communicate verbally due to sickness and have to resort to nonverbal communication to interact with staff. Healthcare professionals must have the necessary listening and verbal and nonverbal communication skills (Beebe and Mottet, 2013:32). Consequently, effective clinical practice requires many cases where vital information must be relayed verbally and nonverbally and listening skills must be honed and applied. Team collaboration and inter-professional communication are essential. When healthcare practitioners are not using verbal and nonverbal communication effectively, as well as listening closely to patient needs, the lives of patients may be at risk (Markel, 2013:21). Lack of vital information and misinterpretation of information, poor listening skills, ignored changes in status and body language, and unclear orders using communication tools like mobile phones can endanger the lives of patients and put healthcare professionals in major dilemmas (Markel, 2013:25). Poor verbal and nonverbal communication, as well as poor listening skills, creates scenarios where medical mistakes can occur. These mistakes have the potential to result in serious injuries or sudden patient deaths. In the UK, mental health mistakes, especially those caused by poor communication and listening, are a major challenge in current organisations (Happell, Platania-Phung, Scott, & Nankivell, 2014:37). According to research conducted by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organisations, mental health mistakes would rank 5th in the list of top ten causes of patient deaths in America if they were included in the annual official statistics. This is ahead of serious illnesses like Alzheimer’s, gunshots, AIDS, diabetes, breast cancer, and accidents (Waldeck and Kearney, 2013:34). The study also revealed that over 50,000 people die in America every year because of medical mistakes. In the UK, up to 33,000 patients die annually because of medical mistakes (Papapanagiotou & Fleuriot, 2014:12). Even more worrying is that poor inter-professional communication – including verbal, nonverbal, and listening – are the leading cause of the errors cited in the study. Other studies have specifically cited poor verbal and nonverbal communication as leading causes of poor performances among employees in all professional fields (Waldeck and Kearney, 2013:37). Mental health nurses with ineffective verbal and nonverbal communication skills, as well as poor listening skills, are ten times more likely to err professionally and put their jobs at risk. A large body of research shows that due to the complexity of mental health and professional services, in addition to the constraints of human performances, it is vital that UK mental health nurses professionals have uniform verbal, nonverbal and listening tools to reduce the possibility of serious errors leading to injuries, financial losses, and loss of life (Waldeck and Kearney, 2013:57). Organisations should cultivate environments in which employees can express themselves freely, and in which verbal and nonverbal communication are fundamental aspects of organisational culture and structure. A study conducted by Donald Berwick in the 1990s showed that employees in various professional fields need inter-professional communication elements like verbal and nonverbal communication to grow personally and professionally (Waldeck and Kearney, 2013:62). This approach is effective in preventing adverse consequences resulting from communication blunders. Over two decades later, this theory still holds and has significant implications on employees’ effectiveness and approach to service delivery in professional settings (Delunas & Rouse, 2014:103). Collaboration between Staff (Mental Health Nurses) and Students in Clinical Placement to Provide High Patient, Care, Service User Experience and Outcome Collaboration between mental health nurses and students has been cited as one of the catalysts for effective teaching and learning in UK mental health institutions. Although it cannot be classified as inter-professional communication per se, collaboration with staff and students is a variant of inter-professional communication strategies. In modern education systems, traditional mental health teaching and learning strategies are not as effective as they once were (Morgan, 2012:26). With the advent of technology and its increasing application in education processes, collaboration with staff and students has become more important. Mental health teaching and learning are no longer about instructors administering lessons, handing out assignments and grading students. Close interactions between students and staff have become vital to effective mental health teaching and learning in UK mental health facilities (Mccomb & Simpson, 2014:1483). For example, students who are less proficient in certain subjects often perform better when communication channels between them and their mental health instructors are opened. Some students need more attention than others, and there is no better way to give them more attention than to communicate with them (Morgan, 2012:38). Research shows students’ attitudes towards disciplines were poor significantly improved with increased communication not only with mental health instructors but also other students. In healthcare fields like midwifery, radiotherapy, and mental health nursing, students’ comprehension improved considerably with more collaboration with their instructors. Communication improves the effectiveness of practical lessons and courses. For example, midwifery requires communication channels to be open throughout (Singh, 2013:22). Students need regular instructions to learn what is expected of them and what their goals should be. Communication improves confidence in two ways. First, students become more confident in their skills and abilities when they collaborate with their supervisors and other staff. Secondly, employees develop more confidence in their teaching and supervision when they collaborate with students (Lamb & Shraiky, 2013:21). The two groups share vital insights and perspectives on how to hone their respective skills and make their collaboration worthwhile. In some countries like Germany, the United States, and the UK, systems are put in place to ensure that students and staff can collaborate on research projects and initiatives (Singh, 2013:23). In the UK, the government has put in place several measures to enhance collaboration between mental health professionals (nurses, etc.), the government, and students. In addition, more initiatives are put in place to improve communication in collaboration. Educational administrators understand that communication determines the success of collaboration, and it should be encouraged at all levels. Strategies of inter-professional communication are becoming increasingly useful in collaboration between students and staff. For example, question asking and extra coaching have been applied in educational and research settings to improve interaction between students and staff (Singh, 2013:45). Past and present research reveals that depending on the level of collaboration between students and staff; institutions can gain an advantage over others in terms of test performances and adherence to relevant benchmarks. Research and educational institutions that encouraged better communication and collaboration between staff and students posted, in general, higher scores in tests and examinations than those that did not (Singh, 2013:46). In summary, it is clear that communication is a key factor in effective and successful collaboration between staff and students in all facilities (Morgan, 2012:27). The objective, for all stakeholders, should be to focus on the performance rather than the results. “Slow” students should be enrolled in sessions where they share personal insights with mental health instructors and instructors. In these sessions, they communicate freely with assigned mentors and coaches, explaining their challenges and possible remedies to the identified dilemmas. On the other hand, mental health instructors motivate and inspire students and provide feasible remedies to their challenges. Accurate Information Sharing Information is irrelevant if it is not accurate. Sharing of accurate information within inter-professional teams significantly improves the efficiency and effectiveness of processes in various fields (Lomi, et al., 2014:409). For example, in specialist medical fields like surgery, mental health, and radiotherapy, accurate information is critical to avoiding potentially life-threatening and career-ending mistakes. To collaborate effectively and avoid making serious mistakes in their practices, mental health nurses need to share accurate information at all times so that patients are provided with the best possible service (Zaharna, 2014:54). A quantitative research by Olupeliyawa, Balasooriya, Hughes, & Osullivan (2014) showed that healthcare professionals who share accurate information record better performances overall compared to ones that do not. Accurate information sharing is also critical in mental health teaching and learning processes in practical placement collaboration by professionals as it affects patients’ care, experience and outcome (Schadewaldt, Mcinnes, Hiller, & Gardner, 2014:1188). Mental health nurses and students need accurate educational information to achieve desired levels of efficiency and effectiveness. In 2012, the UK Department of Education sponsored a study aimed at exploring possible strategies to improve teaching and learning processes in the UK medical institutions. The study, which was conducted by the department alongside the Pew Research Group, revealed that accurate information sharing among mental health instructors and students was a vital element in the successful implementation of teaching and learning strategies in UK mental health facilities (Singh, 2013:28). The study’s findings also revealed that students who shared accurate information on assignments and coursework performed better than those who received and shared inaccurate information. In addition, the study revealed that mental health instructors who went out of their way to seek accurate lesson materials posted better results than those who did not (Singh, 2013:33). Finally, the study revealed that the effectiveness of collaborative working strategies among mental health instructors improved with the availability of accurate information. In the working environment, accurate information sharing can improve performances and motivate employees to work harder to improve their productivity. However, successful sharing of accurate information needs effective communication among employees and other professionals. This is where inter-professional communication comes in (Purtilo and Haddad, 2014:29). Inter-professional communication allows people in various professional fields to receive and dispense accurate information that significantly improves their service delivery in patients’ care, safety, experience and outcome (Muellenbach, 2014:405). In mental health research, scientists rely heavily on the availability and sharing of accurate information to succeed in their work. However, evidence shows that mental health nurses who communicate effectively with their colleagues stand a better chance of receiving and dispensing accurate information (Morgan, 2012:108). For example, geneticists often review past studies to determine their relevance and applicability to current research before embarking on their individual or group efforts. Research shows that collaborative research projects and mental health practice are more successful when the information shared and used is accurate and reliable (Hamilton, Begley, & Culler, 2014:57). Inter-professional communication improves the effectiveness of the information sharing process, providing a solid foundation for practitioners in various fields to develop their skills and abilities (Morgan, 2012:91). Through inter-professional communication, organisations can improve the effectiveness of their collaborative projects and gain a competitive advantage over their rivals. A 2013 study conducted by the UK’s Mental Health Foundation showed that patients treated by psychiatrists who worked together by sharing accurate information recorded shorter recovery times in general (Morgan, 2012:35). Such specialists used inter-professional communication to improve collaborative initiatives, as well as accurate information sharing, making them up to date, flexible, and knowledgeable. These findings show that accurate information sharing through inter-professional communication can significantly improve the skill set and abilities of healthcare professionals (Hirakawa & Uemura, 2013:557). References Beebe, S. & Mottet, T. (2013) Business and professional communication: Principles and skills for leadership (2nd ed.), Boston: Pearson. Delunas, L., & Rouse, S. (2014) Nursing and Medical Student Attitudes About Communication and Collaboration Before and After an Interprofessional Education Experience, Nursing Education Perspectives, vol. 35, no. 2, 100-105. Hamilton, J., Begley, C., & Culler, R. (2014) Evaluation of Partner Collaboration to Improve Community-Based Mental Health Services for Low-Income Minority Children and Their Families, Evaluation and Program Planning, vol. 45, no. 3, 50-60. Happell, B., Platania-Phung, C., Scott, D., & Nankivell, J. 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