Deborah Lake - Teamwork, Leadership and Communication: Collaboration Basics for Health Professionals

Physicians and other professionals may fear that sharing responsibility puts them at increased risk for liability. Indeed, liability can arise from negligent acts due to lack of clarity regarding roles and responsibilities that lead to inappropriate delegation of duties or abdication of responsibility [emphasis in original] (, p. ii). A review of relevant court cases in the United States and Canada by the Conference Board of Canada revealed that liability is not a barrier to interprofessional collaboration when all professionals follow these guidelines:

• Act according to their professional standards and comply with regulations set by their regulatory bodies
• Work within teams to clarify roles and responsibilities, and set policies and procedures for communication, decision making, and patient management
• Understand their scope of practice and limitations as set out in relevant legislation
• Understand the scopes of practice of other professionals on their team
• Understand and comply with policies that govern their interdisciplinary interactions, especially when there is role overlap
• Maintain appropriate malpractice liability insurance
• Ensure that the organization has malpractice liability insurance that covers the organization and its employees (e.g., direct liability, vicarious liability)

Overall, major healthcare stakeholders agree that the potential of collaborative care models to enhance the delivery of healthcare should not be hindered by unfounded fears of increased liability ().

Attitudes shape our behavior. To collaborate effectively, you need to be aware of your own attitudes toward teamwork as well as those of your colleagues. Fortunately, attitudes toward teamwork are not etched in stone they change with new experiences and insights. When team members have conversations about their attitudes toward teamwork, they build a shared understanding about their work together. Those conversations are more likely to be positive if all participants employ key interpersonal skills.

Good working relationships are built on trust. To collaborate, people need to trust one another enough to share their vulnerabilities as well as their strengths what they dont know as well as what they do know, what they cant do as well as what they can do. Collaborators build trust over time using a range of interpersonal skills. Specifically, they show respect, establish rapport, demonstrate commitment, and cooperate.

I didnt like the people I was working with.

When co-workers show respect, they affirm the value of each person in the working relationship. It is not necessary for all group members to like each other (, p. 21). Rather, group members recognize that shared responsibility requires attention to the quality of respect in relationships. For interprofessional groups, this quality of respect includes recognizing the importance of the expertise contributed by each profession or discipline. For patient- and family-centered care, this quality of respect includes recognizing the values, beliefs, knowledge, and cultural context of patients and families listening to their perspectives and honoring their choices.

Co-workers establish rapport by listening, showing warmth and empathy, being tactful and approachable, and having a sense of humor. Health professional education programs often provide specific training for building rapport with patients. Using these same skills to build rapport with co-workers is a sign of professional integrity. Those who build rapport with their co-workers also reap the benefits of increased trust and efficiency in collaboration.