Interprofessional Teams in Healthcare: Communication Importance, Issues, and Strategies

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Table of Contents

Leader-Member exchange (LMX) theory
Fostering multidisciplinary teamwork
Three potential issues
Strategies to encourage collaboration
Strategies to positive changes
Engaging in professional development
Promoting professional development to team members
Effectively leading a team in my future role as nurse educator
References

Leader-Member exchange (LMX) theory

Since multidisciplinary teams are crucial for improving project outcomes, leaders need to consider choosing the most efficient ways of organizing the work of the group and managing conflicts. Many organizations view leaders as parental figures and employees as children who need training and guidance (Plakiotis, 2017). One of the methods that can effectively facilitate interprofessional teamwork is the leader-member exchange (LMX) theory which refers to a relationship between leader and followers (Harrison, 2017; Plakiotis, 2017). However, this theory is criticized for lacking equal interaction between leaders and members (Harrison, 2017). Still, it can be an advantage, in this case, because LMX model will allow leaders to cultivate leadership skills in a group of employees who will help to organize teamwork. Moreover, this method applies the psychodynamic approach “to create reflective leaders, by allowing collective consideration of relational and leadership styles, work habits, problem-solving, and decision making in the wider organizational environment” (Plakiotis, 2017, p. 101). For the interaction to be productive, this communication should be built upon loyalty, affect, professional respect, and mutual contribution to exchange.

LMX theory describes three phases of the development of leader-follower collaboration. The first stage is the stranger phase, during which the two parties form an awareness about their expectations of respect (Plakiotis, 2017). Secondly, as leaders and members learn about each other during an acquaintance phase, their relationships deepen (Plakiotis, 2017). Thirdly, a partner phase establishes a standard “high-quality pattern of leader-member exchange” (Plakiotis, 2017, p. 104). Indeed, the application of LMX leadership transformed many organizations by boosting the efficacy of teamwork through positive communication. Since collaboration is the most integral part of successful results in the work of healthcare professionals, in this case, LMX theory can help team leaders establish strong communication with team members to ensure in-group cooperation. Although this model is often criticized for the unequal leader-follower interaction, it is still more advantageous for this team because it considers human psychology in building a relationship with team members. Different employees may not need the same attention from the leader; thus, it is a more effective and realistic leadership theory for this scenario.

Fostering multidisciplinary teamwork

Effective communication in multidisciplinary healthcare teams is the cornerstone of high-quality care and favorable patient outcomes. Therefore, the work of different professionals should be organized and coordinated to enable mutual understanding and knowledge exchange. One of the ways to foster group work in a multifaceted clinical team is to improve communication. For example, the implementation of bedside whiteboards, daily goal sheets, and door communication cards was found to be effective in facilitating collaboration, leading to better health outcomes (Wang et al., 2018). Furthermore, introducing electronic templates for situation, background, assessment, and recommendation or SBAR can speed up the communication between clinicians (Wang et al., 2018). Moreover, allowing all team members to participate in issue evaluation and results assessment should unite the group, striving for excellence (Wang et al., 2018). Lastly, training is essential to developing cohesion between individuals because “it is a psychologically safe environment for team members to … exchange ideas” (Van der Voet & Steijn, 2021, p. 1279). Overall, leaders’ work will be directed towards establishing effective communication in the interprofessional team by building a trustful relationship with a more active cohort responsible for increasing work efficiency.

Three potential issues

Although LMX leadership allows building effective communication and collaboration between team members, three potential issues may arise. The first problem is conflicting ideas and perspectives between different professionals. Secondly, inadequate qualifications of individual clinicians may damage collective competence. The third issue is that the work may be distributed unevenly between the team players due to unequal interaction between the leader and group members.

Issue #1: leadership theories, principles, or skills to address the issue

Since the divergence of ideas and perceptions is inevitable in multidisciplinary teams, leaders should constantly monitor the work environment for the appearance of conflicts. If such a problem originates, leadership should immediately raise this issue and encourage an open discussion for the opposing parties to reveal their views (Xu, 2017). In fact, in the LMX model, the leader’s role is to elicit this discussion in the group with which one has closer interaction, and they, in turn, should coordinate future meetings for resolving a problem. Furthermore, other team members should be able to participate in the conversation to help them come to a consensus.

Issue #2: leadership theories, principles, or skills to address the issue

Although most healthcare teams try to recruit knowledgeable professionals with incredible work ethic, some individuals may behave unprofessionally or lag in acquiring new information and skills. Various reasons may cause such behavior; hence, leaders should investigate every case separately. Furthermore, the members, who will be compromising team competence by unprofessional behavior, should be explained about the unpleasant consequences and receive assistance to improve. Moreover, one of the primary roles of team leaders is to inspire one’s followers for professionalism and continuous education (Xu, 2017). Despite uneven communication between the leader and followers in the LMX model, the former need to establish an example of professionalism and excellence for all team members.

Issue #3: leadership theories, principles, or skills to address the issue

The third issue of unequal work distribution can be prevented if the leader knows each members’ potential, supports further development, and encourages active participation. Furthermore, creating an electronic schedule on a shared platform where employees can see personal goals, tasks, and accomplishments may facilitate a healthy competitive environment. As LMX leadership theory suggests, utilizing the knowledge of human psychology can help leaders find incentives for every follower to encourage active participation in group work.

Strategies to encourage collaboration

Taking care of patients requires collaboration between many different healthcare workers. Collaboration can be defined as an active partnership between professionals to attain a specific objective (Morley & Cashell, 2017). Indeed, this is a combined concept that incorporates various terms and methods to achieve particular goals. The four main strategies to improve collaboration in a multidisciplinary team are cooperation, coordination, shared decision-making, and partnership (Morley & Cashell, 2017). The latter requires building trustful relationships between members who have power balance and equally contribute to teamwork (Morley & Cashell, 2017). Overall, effective collaboration in a healthcare organization can lead to better patient outcomes.

Ineffective communication between clinicians can harm patients’ health, while productive interaction improves healthcare teams’ performance. Indeed, most preventable medical errors result from failure in communication between professionals (Wang et al., 2018). Therefore, it is crucial to encourage multidisciplinary teams to master methods of conveying information. The two ways to enhance communication are introducing standardized checklists and communication routines (Lingard et al., 2017). The latter includes rounds and conferences that allow clinicians to connect and cooperate (Lingard et al., 2017). The former simplifies the adaptation of patients to different healthcare workers because it will enable standardized interaction. Furthermore, checklists ensure that various team members follow identical guidelines for interviewing and examining patients.

Strategies to positive changes

LMX leadership can help initiate positive changes in a team because this model considers the psychodynamic nature of leader-follower relationships. Since people are more productive in a psychologically comfortable environment, it is essential to establish a tolerant and safe environment (Plakiotis, 2017; Van der Voet & Steijn, 2021). Furthermore, conducting training to promote self-awareness and harmonization of internal and external factors can improve the team’s dynamics (Plakiotis, 2017). Moreover, the team should have regular meetings to discuss the overall goals, shared ideas, and divergencies. Overall, better collaboration, communication, and self-awareness of every team member will improve performance and positive patient outcomes.

Engaging in professional development

Having experience in nursing practice is insufficient to become a good nurse educator because teaching also requires specific knowledge and skills. Nevertheless, nurses and academic nurse educators (ANE) share five critical characteristics: knowing the patient, reflective approach, risk-taking, intuitive wisdom, and skilled know-how (Bono-Neri, 2019). To facilitate my professional development as an ANE, I will engage in a mentorship program to observe methods utilized by experienced educators. Furthermore, I will participate in various conferences and workshops to upgrade my clinical teaching skills. I believe that the qualities required to become a successful practicing nurse can be applied to training students not only to set an example and transfer knowledge but also to establish communication with them. Indeed, ANEs should know their student well to help them acquire new information effectively and diminish such adverse outcomes of hospital work as burn-out and stress.

Promoting professional development to team members

In addition to engaging in professional development themselves, leaders should encourage the followers for continuous education. One of the most efficacious methods to promote learning among team members is to motivate the group’s exchange of knowledge and skills (Weiss et al., 2018). Furthermore, mandatory educational workshops should be conducted once a week to ensure that everyone has equal growth opportunities. The effectiveness of these workshops will be tested once a month to check if the delivered material was valuable and helpful. Moreover, each team member will have an opportunity to discuss one’s goals and concerns with the leader every quarter. Weiss et al. (2018) recommend using explicit language to highlight followers’ collective belonging and responsibility when communicating with the group. In fact, the same paper also claims that “explicit inclusive leader language, that is, direct invitations to voice and appreciation of follower input” (Weiss et al., 2018, p. 389). Lastly, as a leader, I would be interested in giving biweekly presentations to the team about specific topics related to professional development.

Effectively leading a team in my future role as nurse educator

Leading a team is a complex task that requires not only professional knowledge and skills in a specific area but also demands the development of abilities to organize and inspire group members. Moreover, in a healthcare setting, the leader’s role is to encourage communication and collaboration between different professionals in a multidisciplinary team to attain positive patient outcomes. Exploration of this topic showed that I could use five main strategies to effectively lead the group as a nurse educator in the future.

The five strategies were inferred from various recommendations about managing interprofessional teams and LMX leadership theory. Firstly, I think it is essential to celebrate individual and group achievements to motivate members for further improvement. The second strategy is based on the LMX model, which implies establishing close communication with the followers with the same expertise to cultivate leadership spirit. This group can help facilitate the involvement of all team members in perfecting communication and collaboration. Thirdly, I believe that gaining respect by setting a personal example of professional conduct and continuous education is an effective strategy to promote the team’s effectiveness. Fourthly, it is crucial to organize training sessions to increase self-awareness and workshops to boost professional development. Finally, despite the use of the LMX leadership approach, in this case, personal and group meetings between team members and the leader are essential. Indeed, these meetings allow the former to express their hopes and concerns while the latter can understand followers’ goals and issues.

References

Bono-Neri, F. (2019). Pedagogical nursing practice: Redefining nursing practice for the academic nurse educator. Nurse Education in Practice, 37, 105-108.

Harrison, C. (2017). Leadership theory and research: A critical approach to new and existing paradigms. Springer.

Lingard, L., Sue-Chue-Lam, C., Tait, G. R., Bates, J., Shadd, J., & Schulz, V. (2017). Pulling together and pulling apart: Influences of convergence and divergence on distributed healthcare teams.Advances in Health Sciences Education, 22(5), 1085-1099.

Morley, L., & Cashell, A. (2017). Collaboration in health care.Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Sciences, 48(2), 207-216.

Plakiotis, C. (2017). Psychodynamic leadership approach and leader-member exchange (LMX): A psychiatric perspective on two leadership theories and implications for training future psychiatrist leaders. In P. Vlamos (Ed.), GeNeDis 2016 (pp. 97-111). Springer.

Van der Voet, J., & Steijn, B. (2021). Team innovation through collaboration: How visionary leadership spurs innovation via team cohesion.Public Management Review, 23(9), 1275-1294.

Wang, Y. Y., Wan, Q. Q., Lin, F., Zhou, W. J., & Shang, S. M. (2018). Interventions to improve communication between nurses and physicians in the intensive care unit: An integrative literature review. International Journal of Nursing Sciences, 5(1), 81-88.

Weiss, M., Kolbe, M., Grote, G., Spahn, D. R., & Grande, B. (2018). We can do it! Inclusive leader language promotes voice behavior in multi-professional teams.The Leadership Quarterly, 29(3), 389-402.

Xu, J. H. (2017). Leadership theory in clinical practice. Chinese Nursing Research, 4(4), 155-157.

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