Introductory Chapter: Teams in Healthcare - A Voyage from ‘Nice to Have’ to ‘the Way to Go’

Introductory Chapter: Patient Safety Remains an Elusive, Fast-Moving Target

“…Among the unforeseen consequences of this tremendous systemic growth and development is the appearance of situational circumstances that are nearly impossible for a single individual to comprehend, analyze, and act upon. In response to the impact of the rapid increase of complexity of technology on patient safety, many potential solutions have focused on team-based approaches as a foundational value of modern patient-safety approaches [13,14].…”

“…The relationship between patient-safety culture and teamwork has been studied quite extensively in the most complex of hospital environments, critical care units, and other clinical environments to help determine if this relationship improves patient outcomes and impacts staff satisfaction (and safety) [7]. Although differences exist between critical care units in terms of housestaff training versus no housestaff, private versus public, closed versus open "workflow architecture," intensivist versus non-intensivist staffed, and cardiac versus surgical versus neurological versus medical units, team-based approaches within these units have both enhanced perceptions of safety and correlated with beneficial clinical outcomes, staff satisfaction, and staff retention [7,13].…”

Introductory Chapter: Medical Education at the Crossroads - Things Are Not How They Used to Be, Things Are Not as They Seem

“…However, more and more the role of a physician, especially in a leadership position, is to facilitate healthcare team integration and operation [12]. The concept of teamwork is a crucial component of being a successful physician (regardless of how defined) [13,14]. Physicians must now learn how to lead, manage, and navigate a full spectrum of healthcare provider interactions, within diverse teams, ensuring that each team member contributes optimally to the overall care of a given patient.…”

Introductory Chapter: Navigating Challenges and Opportunities in Modern Graduate Medical Education

“…Interprofessional education is becoming increasingly important as an integral part of modern GME methodology [41]. Within interprofessional collaboration, the most fundamental operating principle is the maintenance of multilateral communication, respect, and open-minded attitude [42,43].…”