Improving Teamwork and Communication in Schools of Nursing

Abstract

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An Academic Model for Building Effective Faculty Teams to Promote Excellence in Nursing Education

“…From the results of the survey responses, faculty reported a collaborative, inclusive work environment where they feel supported by administration and are provided with opportunities for advancement. Open communication, encouraged collaboration, and intentional teamwork are successful indicators and interventions used to improve an academic environment [11,12]. From the results of the survey responses, faculty reported a collaborative, inclusive work environment where they feel supported by administration and are provided with opportunities for advancement.…”

“…Building and maintain healthy academic work environments where nursing faculty can develop to attain their highest level of professional achievement is challenging [12]. Many new and senior nursing faculty report feeling disillusioned with their jobs as a result of lack of mentoring, orientation, minimal support from leadership, and the hierarchal environment.…”

“…If left unaddressed, these stressors can result in decreased job satisfaction, role strain, and burnout. Academic leaders need to establish healthy work environments for nursing faculty for successful faculty recruitment, retention and collaboration in nursing education [12].…”

Perceptions of Teamwork in Schools of Nursing

“…To explore how teamwork might pertain to a faculty group in a school of nursing, the authors conducted a quality improvement (QI) project to improve teamwork after determining there was a deficit in perceptions of teamwork. 14 In the QI project, faculty and staff in one school of nursing were surveyed about their perceptions of teamwork using the TeamSTEPPS Teamwork Perceptions Questionnaire (T-TPQ). The results indicated a need for improvement in the areas of communication, leadership, team structure, situation monitoring, and mutual support.…”

“…The results indicated a need for improvement in the areas of communication, leadership, team structure, situation monitoring, and mutual support. 14 A subsequent education and coaching intervention resulted in improvement in perceptions of teamwork in the areas of team structure, communication, and leadership. 14 While mutual support and situation monitoring did not show significant improvement, there were increases in the areas of conflict resolution and information gathering.…”