Effective Team Working in Health Care

Abstract

In this chapter we show that team working is vital for high quality health care but that team working is often poor. We draw on research to show that effective team working is associated with fewer errors that harm staff and patients; fewer staff injuries; better staff well-being; higher levels of patient satisfaction; better quality of care; and lower patient mortality. “Pseudo team working” leads to the opposite outcomes. We describe how effective team based working can be developed and identify the importance of team objectives and leadership. The chapter describes the specific challenges for team working in health care, including the complexity of the context and the historical legacy of separate professional development and status hierarchies. We explore how these challenges can be overcome, arguing that ensuring effective team working in health care is critical to ensuring the delivery of high quality, continually improving and compassionate health care.