Developing Stronger Team Dynamics to Improve Communication Internally and Externally
Deborah B Adey1.
1Medicine , University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
Introduction: Our program has grown over the past several years, necessitating additional staff at all professional levels. As staff numbers have grown there has been increasing problems with communication between subservices. Increased sub-specialization of tasks has resulted in isolation of groups providing sequential services within the kidney transplant program, spanning from intake/referral through post-transplant care. This is likely a contributing factor to the increase in complaints from both referring physicians and patients regarding communication.
The Challenges and Changes:The greatest challenge is fostering and maintaining a sense of teamwork with a common mission. Due the number of employees needed to run our service, subgroups have developed and become isolated, focused on their respective responsibilities, with a loss of understanding of how each group contributes to the overall goal of providing the best possible care. The workload is challenging and we are unable to add additional staff due to budget restraints, so improved cooperation is crucial. If everyone, from administrative assistants to physicians better understood the challenges we each face, we may together find ways to identify to improve efficiency and foster respect and understanding.
Stakeholders: The principal stakeholders are those ultimately responsible for the running of the transplant service. This includes the leadership core including our chief operating officer, our service manager, the chief of abdominal transplantation, and the medical director.
Methods:
Proposed Solutions
Proposed Strategies
Impact of a Successful Project: Successful implementation of this project would result in the following:
Metrics for Evaluation of Success
The Transplant Society Leadership Series sponsored by Sanofi.