Article

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of 5 measures of team functioning on patient
outcomes. DESIGN: Observational, exploratory, measurement. Team functioning
surveys and patient outcomes collected 1 year apart in a clinical trial were
analyzed. The findings are discussed in context of the domains of team
functioning, team effectiveness, and quality improvement. SETTING: 27 Veterans
Affairs medical centers. PARTICIPANTS: Staff (t1: N=356; t2: N=273) on inpatient
teams and patients (t1: N=4266; t2: N=3213) treated by the teams. INTERVENTIONS:
Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Five measures of team functioning
(Physician Engagement, Shared Leadership, Supervisor Team Support, Teamness, and
Team Effectiveness scales) and 3 measures of patient outcomes (functional
improvement, discharge destination, and length of stay) were assessed at 2 time
points with hierarchical generalized linear models to evaluate the association
between team functioning measures and changes in patient outcomes. RESULTS:
Associations (P<.05) between team functioning measures and patient outcomes were
found for 3 of the 15 analyses over the study period. Higher Physician Engagement
scale score was associated with lower length of stay (P=.017), and increased
scores on Teamness and Team Effectiveness scales correlated with higher rates of
community discharge (P=.044 and .049, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This
exploratory analysis revealed trends that team functioning corresponds with
patient outcomes in clinically relevant patterns. An increase in community
discharge and a decrease in length of stay were associated with higher scores of
team functioning. Here, we find evidence that modifiable attributes of team
functioning have a measurable effect on patient outcomes. Such findings are
promising and support the need for further research on team effectiveness.
CI - Copyright (c) 2014 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS