Interprofessional Collaboration for Nurse Leaders: Practical Applications to Enhance Team Effectiveness on Telemetry

Abstract Background: According to the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC), there are four core competencies that promote team engagement and collaboration among professionals: 1. Establish shared values 2. Clarify roles and responsibilities 3. Effective communication 4. Teamwork. Together, the competencies create structure and team integration that potentiates favorable outcomes in work culture and patient care when operating in complex, quality-based care settings. The setting for this quality improvement project is on a telemetry unit, assistant nurse manager (ANM) team in the greater Sacramento region of California. Problem: The Gallup Q12 is an employee engagement survey that identifies inter-relational domains of influence on peer-peer collaboration and workplace engagement. Areas that were identified for improvement in the ANM team were working relationships, recognition, and team structure. Interventions: Four interventions were selected as tests of change: 1. Completing and sharing the Gallup Strengthfinder tool with an ANM peer 2. Development of a transparent team charter 3. Masterclass training on crucial conversations 4. Escape room simulation. Outcome Measures: The metric that indicated improvements to overall ANM team engagement was an increase in the post-intervention Q12 mean score from 3.6 to 4.0. The key drivers were Q12 survey questions, Q05:“My manager or someone at work seems to care about me as a person” and Q01:“I know what is expected of me at work”. Results: Post-intervention Q12 survey resulted with an increase in the mean score from 3.6 to 4.1. Driver scores increased in Q05: “My manager or someone at work seems to care about me as a person” from 3.4 to 4.33, and Q01: “I know what is expected of me at work” from 4.1 to 4.33. Conclusion: Achievement of the project aim signifies effective application of the interventions in enhancing interprofessional ANM team engagement as purported by IPEC. The foundational elements for enhancing teamwork are establishing clear team structure, organization, effective communication, and opportunities for team engagement.