Variances in Perceptions of Interdisciplinary Collaboration by Hospice Staff

Abstract

The purpose of this descriptive project is to use the Modified Index of Interdisciplinary Collaboration (MIIC) to assess the perceptions of collaboration of 95 staff from all disciplines on five different hospice teams. Specifically, the research questions for the project are: 1) Are there variances in perceptions of collaboration between hospice programs? 2) Are there variances in perceptions of collaboration between and within hospice programs by staff in different disciplines? Significant variances were found in the perceptions of interdisciplinary collaboration between hospice teams. There were no significant differences found between hospice providers of different disciplines. The study concludes that measurement of collaboration is important given the emphasis in hospice on collaboration, and that the MIIC is one tool that can be used for that purpose.