Summary: The Importance Of Interprofessional Communication

This essay will look at how interprofessional communication in health and social care can impact service-user safety. Interprofessional collaboration is when different health professions work together though the process of communication and shared decision making (Bridges, et al, 2011). In such a complex environment such as the NHS were one service-user could be treated by several different professions it’s important to service-user safety that these teams are cohesive. Communication between these different groups is imperative, failure in communication can be detrimental to service-user safety. Failures in communication and co-ordination can have massive adverse effect, such as in the case of Victoria Climbie were these failures lead to the

Failing in service-user safety can sometimes be attributed to communication failure, however communication is one of the most important tools in preventing such failures. The ability to communicate effectively as a team stems from understanding the various professions in the team (Gluyas & Morrison, 2013). Understanding the various roles allows for an insight into how the healthcare system links together and the part each roles plays in provision of care. Additionally it aides in building trust and respect amongst team members (Gluyas & Morrison, 2013). This in turn can be linked to improved service-user safety, because it allows for role relation and see their part in the service-user care pathway. It is perceived that multi-disciplinary collaboration when it comes to service-user care is linked to more positive outcomes and experiences (Clifton et al., 2007). Teams which are able to communicate and are well coordinated have a lower rate of error (Despins, 2009). An effective team can be achieved through an effective model of communication, where members of each profession can openly share their opinions and challenge the opinions of others, in the hopes of improving service-user care and thus service-user safety. However, this type of honesty can only work well when there is a mutual respect and understanding within a team. Mutual respect, understanding teamed with effective communication lead to a

The NHS is set in a way that all professions aim to work towards a common goal, the 6 C’s. These are Care, Compassion, Competence, Communication, Courage and Commitment (NHS England, 2012). They were created in the hope that they would lead to a more complete service-user experience. The values are an important part of service-user safety. The 6C’s are there to help minimise incidences like those that occurred in the Mid-Staffordshire trust. Working with those value systems should cause a reduction in failures of service-user safety. Two years after the implementation of the 6C’s it was found that there were improvements in service-user satisfaction and communication (NHS England, 2014). Kalisch et al, 2007 found that efficient group work saw increased levels of job satisfaction, service-user satisfaction, quality of care and most importantly service-user safety. The delivery of safe care relies heavily on effective team working (Despins, 2009). Research conducted by the Joint commission concluded that failure in teamwork and communication were contributing factors for adverse events (Gluyas & Morrison, 2013). This could be due to the effects team working has on staff wellbeing and satisfaction (Agrawal, 2013). When staff are more motivated to do their job well there is a decrease in the rate of error (Agrawal, 2013). It was found that deficiencies in teamwork led to the