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Study recommends improved communication among healthcare workers

Patient Safety Monitor Alert, February 7, 2005

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Poor communication and collaboration among healthcare professionals leads to continued medical errors and staff turnover, according to Silence Kills: The Seven Crucial Conversations for Healthcare, a study of more than 1,700 nurses, physicians, clinical care staff, and administrators. Released January 26, the study was co-sponsored by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) and VitalSmarts, a Utah-based company that specializes in leadership training and organizational performance, according to a U.S. Newswire article.

The findings include:

• 84% of physicians and 62% of nurses and other clinical care providers have seen coworkers take shortcuts that could endanger patients
• 88% of physicians and 48% of nurses and other providers work with people who display poor clinical judgement
• Fewer than 10% of physicians, nurses, and other clinical staff directly confront their colleagues about concerns, and one in five physicians said they have seen harm come to patients as a result
• Those healthcare workers who raise these concerns observe better patient outcomes, work harder, are more satisfied, and more committed to staying in their jobs

"To often, improving workplace communication is seen as a 'soft' issue. The truth is we must build environments that support and demand greater candor among staff if we are to make a demonstrable impact on patient safety," said Kathy McCauley, RN, PhD, BC, FAAN, FAHA, president of the AACN.

As a solution to the communication problems, the AACN developed a set of recommendations to promote communication and collaboration among caregivers. Hospital leaders must make improving crucial conversations a priority, according to the study. The four recommended steps to this end are:

• establish a baseline and target for improvement
• conduct focus-group interviews
• focus on problem areas
• implement training

Dennis O'Leary, MD, president of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, said that communication is a major contributor to medical errors. "The standards and recommendations put forth today make an important contribution to beginning to solve the identified communication problems," he said.

To read the U.S. Newswire release, click here.

To read the study, visit www.rxforbettercare.org.

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