In the contemporary healthcare environment, care providers are required to communicate and collaborate continuously. The increased number of players in healthcare teams can be good for patients due to the benefits of shared knowledge and experience. However, it can also lead to inadequate care coordination, resulting in adverse events, increased costs, and waste. In their article, Mitchell et al. show that these effects are due to ineffective communication, role confusion and imbalance, the lack of trust and shared goals, and poor leadership and patient engagement. For example, ineffective communication may result in mistakes during patient handoffs, leading to adverse events or unnecessary procedures. Role confusion and imbalance, in a similar manner, affect team members’ capacity and their activities. The authors also note the importance of establishing measurable processes and outcomes, as this helps to monitor team performance and progress.
Communication and interdisciplinary collaboration help to prevent adverse events by promoting teamwork and information-sharing. By following the principles of effective communication and collaboration, care providers can devise and fulfill care plans more accurately, thus achieving better patient outcomes. Supporting these practices through establishing roles, responsibilities, and communication channels enables institutions to decrease the possibility of adverse events and additional costs resulting from poor teamwork. For example, in my practice, handoffs follow a strict procedure aimed at ensuring the completeness and accuracy of all patient and medical information. This helps to prevent errors in procedures and medications, thus lowering the incidence of adverse events and reducing avoidable expenses. Based on my experience, training nurses in communication and interdisciplinary collaboration is essential for improving the quality of care provided in institutions.
