Overcoming Communication Barriers that Lead to Errors in Perioperative Health Care

Effective communication is essential for quality patient outcomes and minimizing the risk of health care errors. Ineffective communication is cited as one of the leading causes of such errors. Understanding communication barriers within the hierarchical structure of perioperative teams allows organizations to develop a safety culture further. The transactional communication model is a helpful tool for exploring core components of communication, the multidimensional context that affects communication, and the various cues that influence communication. Closed-loop communication patterns and well-established tools facilitate effective communication and reduce the likelihood of errors.