Piloting Team Training at Duke University Health System

Abstract

Good team communication and coordination are critical to the safe delivery of health care. Efforts at training students, clinicians, and support staff in team coordination skills are beginning to be implemented across the country. However, there is limited data validating the effectiveness of such programs or highlighting the features that make one program more effective than another. In this paper we present the results of a pilot project to evaluate a team training program at the Ambulatory Surgery Center in the Duke University Health System. Our experiences suggest that (1) initial data collection regarding team coordination attitudes and skills and (2) close follow-up coordination with the clinical organization to implement applicable practice changes are essential components to a teamwork coordination program.