Communication Within Health Care Teams

Question: Using current evidence, please discuss communication within health care teams. Please focus on; - the role of the Registered Nurse - the impact of poor communication and patient safety - the value of TeamSTEPPS and ISBAR Answer: The evidence-based literature emphasizes the influence of effective communication between healthcare teams in boosting their morale and enhancing the quality and efficiency of the healthcare services. Thomas (2007:p. 36) discusses the adverse impact of the deficits in communication and teamwork between the healthcare professionals on the safety and wellness of the treated patients. Indeed, the role of registered nurses in the healthcare management system related to imparting patients care and safety through effective communication of important clinical information between the nursing fraternities engaged in rendering support and assistance to the patients undergoing therapy in context to their clinical morbidities. The unobstructed flow of clinical information between the nursing teams highly warranted for executing proactive strategies to ascertain effectively rendered patients care, while bypassing the probability of practice errors and system threats resulting in harm or injury to the treated patients. Burton Ludwig (2010:p. 5-6) describe the role of nurses in connecting with a variety of patients of different age and health status and assisting them in their medications, effectively monitoring their condition and educating their families in context to the intensity and treatment of the clinical morbidities experienced by them in the clinical setting. The effective dissemination of patients information related to the disease conditions and treatment modalities indeed facilitates their efficient handling by the non-physician professionals (including registered nurses) to catalyse the healing process and restoring psychosocial homeostasis under the conditions of stressful situations resulting from the disease. Peate (2010:p.2-6) support the contention advocating the job of nursing professionals in context to enhanced learning outcomes leading to professional credibility in clinical practice. Indeed, the registered nurses require dealing with patients critical conditions and life threatening events warranting efficient utilization of skills and knowledge while devising protective measures for rendering qualitative care and assistance to the patients undergoing therapeutic modalities. The role of registered nurses in context to their communication skills relates to enhancing essential learning activities in clinical practice. Youngberg (2011:p.432) illustrates the perspective of the influence of poor communication between the healthcare teams on the health and safety of the affected patients. The evidence-based literature discusses the disasters including traumatic conditions and mortalities resulting from the communication errors by the healthcare professionals. Salas Frush (2013:p.113) de scribe the evidences in context to the perinatal mortalities resulting from poor communication and coordination of care between the healthcare professionals. Indeed, imparting team training among the healthcare professionals in terms of enhancing communication skills highly warranted for reducing the severity index in context to the adverse outcomes from the patients morbidities and traumatic conditions. The clinical literature emphasizes the significance of ISBAR mnemonic under the privilege by Team STEPPS in enhancing communication among the healthcare professionals, thereby leading to sustained improvements in patients safety and wellness patterns within the organizational confinements (Berman et al, 2015:p.779). The care giving strategies by the healthcare professionals warrant effective communication with the utilization of ISBAR tool while handing over the clinical information to other health professionals and family members engaged in patients care and treatment. Indeed, the ISBAR tool correctly identifies patients identity (in terms of demographics), situation (with respect to the presenting complaints), background (in context to history of present illness), assessment (pertaining to diagnoses and medical decision-making) and rationale (presenting patients follow up plan and clinical discourse). Therefore, the nursing professionals require effectively retrieving patients rele vant clinical information with ISBAR utility to ensure administration of appropriate therapeutic regimen and healthcare assistance, while proactively avoiding fatal communication errors in context to inappropriate treatment and lack of compliance leading to sustained morbidities and life threatening conditions among the treated population. References Berman, A, Snyder, S, Kozier, B, Erb, G, Levett-Jones, T, Dwyer, T, Hales, M, Harvey, N, Moxham, L, Park, T, Parker, B, Reid-Searl, K Stanley, D, Kozier Erb's 2015, Fundamentals of Nursing Australian Edition, Pearson, Australia Burton, M Ludwig, L 2010, Fundamentals of Nursing Care: Concepts, Connections Skills (2nd edn.), Davis, USA Peate, L 2010, Nursing Care and the Activities of Living (2nd edn.), Wiley, UK Salas Frush 2013, Improving Patient Safety Through Teamwork and Team Training, Oxford, NY Thomas, T 2007, Perceptions of Registered Nurses Sanctioned by a Board of Nursing: individual, health care team, patient, and system contributions to error, UMI, USA Youngberg, B 2011, Principles of Risk Management and Patient Safety, Jones Bartlett, USA