Objective: We investigated the effect of TeamSTEPPS training on teamwork perceptions and patient safety outcomes in an inpatient obstetrics setting. Study Design: Physicians and nurses from the regional perinatal center were offered TeamSTEPPS instruction and administered a voluntary survey to assess subjective perceptions of team dynamics and patient safety prior to and six months following TeamSTEPPS training. Responses were analyzed using ANOVA and chi-square analysis. Objective measures of patient safety outcomes were the incidence and blood loss of postpartum hemorrhage after vaginal delivery (PPH-VD) or cesarean section (PPH-CS) and incidence of shoulder dystocia (SD). Outcomes were analyzed using Mann-Whitney and Kruskal Wallis testing. Results: Surveys were collected from 20 physicians and 15 nurses prior to training and from 9 physicians and 20 nurses six months following training. Survey data showed an overall positive perception of teamwork and patient safety behaviors across all respondents. However, we found no significant changes in perception of team dynamics or behaviors to promote patient safety between pre- and post-training timepoints. Physicians and nurses differed in perception of team dynamics (p=0.001) and patient safety behaviors (p<0.001), with nurses reporting more negative perception of safety behaviors post-training. Physician attendees experienced a non-significant lower rate of PPH-VD and PPH-CS with unchanged blood loss, and an increased rate of SD compared to non-attendees in the six months following TeamSTEPPS training (p=0.058, p=0.20, p=0.21, respectively). Conclusion: Our experience with perinatal TeamSTEPPS training as a singular intervention was not demonstrative of improvement in teamwork and patient safety perceptions or incidences of obstetric emergencies suggesting that integration into a more comprehensive patient safety program and ongoing training of a larger proportion of providers per department may be necessary to realize tangible benefits of TeamSTEPPS. Our survey results also highlight important differences between physician and nursing staff perceptions.

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