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1 – 10 of 158Mouna Idoudi, Mohamed Ayoub Tlili, Manel Mellouli and Chekib Zedini
Effective teamwork is crucial for patient safety in healthcare. The TeamSTEPPS Teamwork Perceptions Questionnaire (T-TPQ) is a widely used tool for assessing teamwork perceptions…
Abstract
Purpose
Effective teamwork is crucial for patient safety in healthcare. The TeamSTEPPS Teamwork Perceptions Questionnaire (T-TPQ) is a widely used tool for assessing teamwork perceptions. The T-TPQ has been adapted and validated for hospital setting use in several countries. This study aimed to translate and validate the T-TPQ into French for use among Tunisian healthcare professionals, enhancing teamwork assessment and patient safety initiatives.
Design/methodology/approach
A rigorous process ensured cultural and linguistic adaptation of the T-TPQ, including back-translation, expert panel review, and pilot testing. 459 healthcare professionals from four hospitals in Kairouan, Tunisia participated. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) compared the original five-factor structure with a revised structure based on exploratory factor analysis (EFA).
Findings
Both CFA models demonstrated good fit, with no significant difference between them (∆χ2 = 22.51, p = 0.79). The original five-factor structure was retained due to its established theoretical foundation. The French T-TPQ exhibited strong internal consistency (α = 0.9). Two-way Random ICCs indicated fair to good test-retest reliability for all the five dimensions (0.633–0.848).
Research limitations/implications
Several limitations should be acknowledged. The use of a questionnaire as a data collection tool is the source of a reporting bias, for fear of being identified or for reasons of “social desirability”. Nevertheless, this social desirability was minimal, as Baker et al. (2010) took steps to mitigate this during the instrument's development. Additionally, for assessing attitudes and perceptions, self-reported measures are deemed more effective, whereas objective measures are advocated for behavioral assessments. Furthermore, the participants were informed of the absence of good or bad answers, the importance of answering as closely as possible, and the confidentiality. Moreover, considering the data collection period, the COVID- 19 pandemic and its potential impact on recruitment, data collection, and participant responses. Although the sample size of 459 met the recommended criteria for conducting confirmatory factor analysis, as suggested by Bentler and Chou (1987) and (Floyd and Widaman, 1995), the COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges in recruitment. The increased workload and stress on healthcare professionals, coupled with staff redeployment and research restrictions within hospitals and care units, likely hindered achieving an even larger sample size. These circumstances also necessitated adjustments to data collection methods to ensure safety and adherence to pandemic protocols. This involved incorporating online surveys option with paper-based questionnaires and implementing stricter hygiene measures during in person data collection. Furthermore, the pandemic impacted the teamwork perceptions as significantly redefined the healthcare environment, placing immense pressure on professionals due to surging patient volumes, staff shortages, and the emotional burden of caring for critically ill individuals. This heightened stress and workload likely influenced teamwork dynamics, potentially fostering both positive adaptations, such as increased cohesion and support, as well as negative consequences like communication breakdowns and decreased morale (Terregino et al., 2023).
Practical implications
We outline significant practical implications for leaders in health care for improving teamwork and patient safety. Or, healthcare leaders can significantly enhance teamwork and patient safety by incorporating the validated French T-TPQ into their improvement strategies. This reliable tool enables the assessment of staff perceptions regarding teamwork strengths and weaknesses, specifically in areas like communication and leadership. By identifying these crucial areas, leaders can implement targeted training programs and interventions. In fact, the existing body of research consistently demonstrates the positive impact of team training interventions, on both teamwork processes and patient outcomes. These interventions have been shown to enhance teamwork skills (Baker et al., 2010; Thomas and Galla, 2013; Weaver et al., 2014). In areas such as communication, leadership, situation monitoring, and mutual support, leading to decreased mortality and morbidity rates (Weaver et al., 2014). Implementing team training programs fosters trust and collaboration around shared goals, contributing to a more effective and safer healthcare environment for both patients and professionals. Additionally, the culturally adapted T-TPQ not only benefits individual healthcare settings but also unlocks opportunities for broader research and collaboration on a global scale. By enabling cross-cultural comparisons and benchmarking, the T-TPQ can deepen our understanding of how teamwork dynamics vary across diverse healthcare environments and cultural contexts. This knowledge is invaluable for tailoring teamwork interventions and training programs to specific populations and settings, ensuring their effectiveness and cultural relevance. Moreover, integrating teamwork training into continuing professional development, interprofessional and medical education initiatives is crucial for cultivating collaborative competencies and building high-performing healthcare teams. Research has shown that interprofessional teamwork experiences significantly enhance collaborative competencies among nursing and medical students, emphasizing the importance of incorporating teamwork training early in healthcare education. This approach equips future healthcare professionals with the necessary skills to navigate complex team environments, ultimately improving patient care quality and mitigating workload issues that contribute to burnout (Simin et al., 2010; Ceylan, 2017; Fox et al., 2018).
Originality/value
The French version of the T-TPQ was semantically equivalent and culturally relevant with adequate test-retest reliability as compared to the English version, expanding its applicability and contributing to understanding teamwork perceptions in this context. The French T-TPQ offers a valuable tool for assessing teamwork, identifying areas for improvement, and implementing interventions to enhance teamwork and patient safety in Tunisia and potentially other French-speaking regions.
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Lilly-Mari Sten, Pernilla Ingelsson and Marie Häggström
The purpose of this paper is to describe the perception of real teamwork and sustainable quality culture as well as success factors for achieving a sustainable quality culture…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the perception of real teamwork and sustainable quality culture as well as success factors for achieving a sustainable quality culture within an organisation, focusing on top management teams (TMTs). An additional purpose is to explore the relationship between real teamwork and sustainable quality culture.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-methods design focusing on TMTs was used. Four TMTs were open-sampled and located in different parts of Sweden. The data were collected through questionnaires and focus group discussions between April 2022 and December 2022. Follow-up meetings were thereafter held with the participants. A meta-analysis was conducted of the data from the four TMTs.
Findings
Two overarching conclusions of this study were: to follow the developed methodology can be one way to increase TMTs' abilities for real teamwork alongside a sustainable quality culture, and the results also showed the importance of a systems view, emotional commitment and continuous improvement for improving real teamwork and creating a sustainable quality culture.
Practical implications
Practical implications were suggestions on how to increase the TMTs' abilities for real teamwork alongside a sustainable quality culture. A deepened understanding of real teamwork and a sustainable quality culture was also achieved by the participants.
Originality/value
The novelty of this paper is the use of a new methodology for assessing teamwork and sustainable quality culture. To the authors' knowledge, no similar research has previously been performed to investigate teamwork alongside a sustainable quality culture, focusing on TMTs.
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Luca Pietrantoni, Greta Mazzetti, Mabel San Román Niaves, Rudolf Kubik, Davide Giusino and Marco De Angelis
Although the literature on the effectiveness of team interventions is constantly expanding, there has been a strong focus on the process mechanisms that could explain their…
Abstract
Purpose
Although the literature on the effectiveness of team interventions is constantly expanding, there has been a strong focus on the process mechanisms that could explain their success, often overlooking the contextual aspects in which these interventions are carried out. Based on the Context-Mechanism-Outcome framework, this study aims to investigate the influence of contextual factors on the effectiveness of digital team coaching interventions that use social network visualisation to enhance team coordination and reduce interpersonal conflicts.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a multi-wave, longitudinal design, this research analysed 38 work teams from three organisations over three-time points. Data collection focused on manager and peer support, the mechanisms of training transfer and action plan implementation and the outcomes of these interventions. Surveys were administered in three organisations, involving 317 respondents across different phases. The intervention spanned six to eight months, incorporating three to four structured online group sessions. Each session involved a multi-stage process, concluding with a result-oriented action plan about work-related goals. The intervention included social network visualisation, discussions, coaching and continuous refinement of action plans.
Findings
The analysis highlights how manager support significantly correlates with team coordination and performance, mainly when teams are less engaged in implementing action plans. Peer support did not show a mediating effect on training transfer or outcomes but had direct positive impacts on team coordination and performance.
Practical implications
Teams actively implementing action plans may require less immediate managerial support for effective coordination and high performance. The manager’s role becomes crucial, particularly in the early stages of the intervention or in those teams where online coordination alone may not be adequate for action plan implementation. Peer support for training transfer could enhance the effectiveness of the intervention in achieving desired team outcomes; therefore, cultivating a supportive peer environment is crucial for the success of such interventions. Monitoring and assessing team dynamics are vital to maximise the benefits of digital team coaching interventions.
Originality/value
This study stands out for its innovative exploration of the interplay between managerial and peer support in the context of digital team coaching, using social network visualisation as a novel approach to enhancing team dynamics.
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Reza Salehi, Iravan Masoudi-Asl, Hassan Abolghasem Gorji and Hojatolah Gharaee
A healthcare unit's effectiveness largely depends on how well its interprofessional teams work together. Unfortunately, the strategies used to improve these teams often lack…
Abstract
Purpose
A healthcare unit's effectiveness largely depends on how well its interprofessional teams work together. Unfortunately, the strategies used to improve these teams often lack substance. This study analyzed these strategies and found a performance gap.
Design/methodology/approach
This study took a unique mixed-method approach, systematically reviewing both qualitative and quantitative studies that identified strategies to enhance interprofessional teams in healthcare units. To gauge the effectiveness of these strategies, the researcher utilized an Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) in four specialized clinical training centers in Hamadan province, Iran. The analysis of the IPA involved 35 experts from these centers as the statistical population.
Findings
Based on a systematic review, there are seven categories: contextual, strategic, communication, organizational, individual, Human Resources Management (HRM), and environmental for promoting interprofessional teams with a total of 36 sub-indicator. Based on the IPA, the HRM aspect shows the most extensive performance gap. The individual and organizational aspects fall under resource wastage, and the environmental aspect is within the indifferent zone. Also, some critical sub-indicators, such as incentives/rewards, roles and responsibilities, financial resources, team-initiated innovation, the culture of respect, partner resources, humility, data availability, set expectations, and team availability, are in the weak areas.
Practical implications
This research has identified critical areas for improvement in promoting teamwork in clinical training centers through a comprehensive gap analysis. It also presents practical policy solutions to address these weak points, providing a clear roadmap for enhancing interprofessional teams in healthcare units.
Originality/value
Improving teamwork in healthcare can be challenging, but it is possible with proper strategies and tools. One of the highlights of the recent study was the combination of systematic review studies with IPA to identify areas for improving interprofessional teamwork in clinical training centers.
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Piotr Buła, Anna Thompson and Agnieszka Anna Żak
We aimed to analyze the impact of the transition to the hybrid model of teamwork and team dynamics from the perspective of the five key challenges, i.e. communication…
Abstract
Purpose
We aimed to analyze the impact of the transition to the hybrid model of teamwork and team dynamics from the perspective of the five key challenges, i.e. communication, coordination, connection, creativity and culture.
Design/methodology/approach
To achieve the stated aim, we conducted a literature review and then an exploratory qualitative study. We split the research into phases: December 2021 to January 2022 and July to August 2022. In the first phase, we conducted computer-assisted online interviews (CAWIs) with all members of the remote team and an in-depth interview with the manager. After the transition from remote to hybrid work in February 2022, we returned to the team to conduct in-depth interviews with team leaders and the manager.
Findings
We identified key findings, i.e. managerial implications of differences across the 5 Cs (communication, coordination, connection, creativity and culture) noted in the functioning of the analyzed team as the team shifted from fully remote work to the hybrid work model.
Research limitations/implications
We concluded that if people do not spend time together and are not impregnated with the unique culture and values of a given organization, they will not feel a connection to its distinctive ethos and may choose to leave. In the longer-term, the last challenge may be the biggest single opportunity for employees post-pandemic and concurrently the single biggest challenge that organizational leadership will need to address, given that sustainable market success depends on talent.
Originality/value
The results showed that team communication, teamwork coordination, social and emotional connections among team members, nurturing of creativity, as well as of the organizational culture were of high importance to the team in the hybrid work model. Thus, we confirmed the findings of other authors. The study contributes to our understanding of the impact of the hybrid work model on teamwork and team dynamics and provides some guidance on how organizations can mitigate these, in particular through the team manager.
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Shubhi Gupta, Govind Swaroop Pathak and Baidyanath Biswas
This paper aims to determine the impact of perceived virtuality on team dynamics and outcomes by adopting the Input-Mediators-Outcome (IMO) framework. Further, it also…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to determine the impact of perceived virtuality on team dynamics and outcomes by adopting the Input-Mediators-Outcome (IMO) framework. Further, it also investigates the mediating role of team processes and emergent states.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors collected survey data from 315 individuals working in virtual teams (VTs) in the information technology sector in India using both offline and online questionnaires. They performed the analysis using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM).
Findings
The authors investigated two sets of hypotheses – both direct and indirect (or mediation interactions). Results show that psychological empowerment and conflict management are significant in managing VTs. Also, perceived virtuality impacts team outcomes, i.e. perceived team performance, team satisfaction and subjective well-being.
Research limitations/implications
The interplay between the behavioural team process (conflict management) and the emergent state (psychological empowerment) was examined. The study also helps broaden our understanding of the various psychological variables associated with teamwork in the context of VTs.
Practical implications
Findings from this study will aid in assessing the consequences of virtual teamwork at both individual and organisational levels, such as guiding the design and sustainability of VT arrangements, achieving higher productivity in VTs, and designing effective and interactive solutions in the virtual space.
Social implications
The study examined the interplay between behavioural team processes (such as conflict management) and emergent states (such as psychological empowerment). The study also theorises and empirically tests the relationships between perceived virtuality and team outcomes (i.e. both affective and effectiveness). It may serve as a guide to understanding team dynamics in VTs better.
Originality/value
This exploratory study attempts to enhance the current understanding of the research and practice of VTs within a developing economy.
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Malwela Joseph Lebea, Justus Ngala Agumba and Oluseyi Julius Adebowale
The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for people of all ages underscores the vital role of public healthcare…
Abstract
Purpose
The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for people of all ages underscores the vital role of public healthcare facilities (PHFs) in delivering essential healthcare services. However, these facilities often suffer from inadequate maintenance, exacerbated by the insufficient implementation of maintenance strategies. Recognizing the importance of PHFs in enhancing healthcare services, this paper investigates the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) in the maintenance strategies of PHFs in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
Through semi-structured interviews with nineteen purposively selected maintenance personnel from the Limpopo Department of Health (DoH), this study identified and analyzed the CSFs to enhance maintenance operations in PHFs. Thematic content analysis was employed to derive key insights from the collected data.
Findings
The study's findings highlight adequate maintenance planning and effective leadership as the two overarching CSFs in the maintenance of PHFs. These factors play a pivotal role in addressing challenges that hinder the current maintenance team from meeting maintenance requirements to the satisfaction of both staff and patients within PHFs.
Originality/value
The study offers valuable insights for policymakers to improve the effectiveness of maintenance operations in PHFs. By addressing the identified CSFs, policymakers can enhance maintenance operations in PHFs, positively impacting healthcare service delivery and the well-being of both staff and patients.
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Kristina Frid, Elin K. Funck and Anna H. Glenngård
This paper aims to extend insights about the relationship between inter-organizational collaboration and approaches to control from the perspective of decision-makers. We…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to extend insights about the relationship between inter-organizational collaboration and approaches to control from the perspective of decision-makers. We investigate the relationship between approaches to control and intended forms of integration between actors responsible for solving the complex problem of integrated person-centered care for elderly with diverse and significant needs.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical study is based on a content analysis of contractual agreements. We have analyzed a total of 118 collaboration agreements and associative documents between all Swedish regions and municipalities.
Findings
The study shows that intended integration is subject to remarkable variation in intended forms of inter-organizational collaboration in this Swedish case. The paper illustrates that decision-makers’ intentions with proposed collaboration in each given context are important for the chosen approach to control. Regardless of intended forms of integration, our study suggests that an imminent soft approach to control is expressed alongside limited signs of hard control. Various forms of intended integration can be managed by the two approaches simultaneously insofar as the agreements appear to have a two-sided purpose.
Originality/value
Our paper proposes an empirically driven taxonomy of intended forms of integration initiatives. The taxonomy provides resources for studies about how collaboration can be managed when it is stipulated by national legislation but local self-governance gives actors considerable freedom to decide on how to organize and manage services. By presenting the taxonomy and relating this to approaches of control, our iterative study builds on and adds to a recent stream of research arguing that the relationship between collaboration and approaches to control may by fuzzier and more complex than originally thought.
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Maria João Cunha, Carla Cruz and Célia Belim
This research aims to explore perceptions of subjective well-being (SWB) in public relations (PR) practitioners, focusing on dimensions of job satisfaction, networking…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to explore perceptions of subjective well-being (SWB) in public relations (PR) practitioners, focusing on dimensions of job satisfaction, networking, relationships and work–life balance, while addressing the under-researched area of gender and age – related to stages of life – disparities in SWB within the PR industry.
Design/methodology/approach
Employing a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design, this study utilised a survey, followed by semi-structured interviews to investigate SWB among PR professionals in Portugal, considering gender and stages of life differences.
Findings
Using a gendered and stages of life lens, this study found nuanced perceptions of SWB among Portuguese PR professionals. Older women showed higher emotional well-being but lower work evaluations than men, while young professionals exhibited less gender disparities in SWB. Men reported greater job satisfaction, emphasising passion, while women faced challenges like work overload and valued recognition. Gender differences were seen in networking, with men favouring teamwork and women valuing friendships for career advancement. Work–life balance issues, especially among older women, related to mental health.
Originality/value
This study contributes to filling the research gap regarding SWB in the PR industry, particularly in Portugal, offering insights into gender and stages of life dynamics that influence SWB perceptions, thereby informing strategies for enhancing well-being and productivity in PR workplaces.
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Melita Peršolja, Boštjan Žvanut, Špela Rot and Mirko Markič
This study aims to endeavor to discern the predominant leadership styles used by nursing managers within the framework of Slovenian primary health centers. Using a quantitative…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to endeavor to discern the predominant leadership styles used by nursing managers within the framework of Slovenian primary health centers. Using a quantitative research approach, the study was conducted through the administration of a structured questionnaire.
Design/methodology/approach
The investigation encompassed 67 nursing managers, representing the entire spectrum of primary health centers in Slovenia. A stratified representative subset comprising 53 top nursing managers actively participated in this study.
Findings
The prevailing leadership style among nursing managers predominantly manifests as the “integrated” style, characterized by a balanced emphasis on both interpersonal relationships and task-oriented elements. These nursing leaders exhibited a proclivity for fostering collaborative teamwork, with their leadership approach notably shaped by traits such as positive thinking, self-assuredness, comprehensive leadership knowledge and an intrinsic motivation to guide and inspire individuals. Notably, leadership knowledge emerged as the most influential factor in determining the selected leadership style. The study’s findings recognize specific areas in which leadership competencies among nurse managers may require further enhancement and development.
Originality/value
The study’s findings are based on a specific subset of nursing leaders in a particular region, which can add to the originality, especially as there is limited prior research in this specific context. The study’s exploration of leadership styles is original in the sense that it provides insights into the leadership behaviors and traits of nursing managers in the given context. The emphasis on factors such as positive thinking and leadership knowledge as influential elements adds originality to the study.
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