NURS FPX 4005 Assessment 2

Name

Capella university

NURS-FPX4005 Nursing Leadership: Focusing on People, Processes, and Organizations

Prof. Name

Date

Interview and Interdisciplinary Issue Identification

This paper investigates an interview with a healthcare professional to identify an organizational issue that would benefit from an interdisciplinary solution. The report summarizes the interview findings, change theories, leadership strategies, and collaborative approaches to addressing the identified problem.

Interview Summary

The interviewee is a charge nurse with over five years of experience in supervising nursing staff, acting as a liaison between departments, coordinating patient care, and working at St. Michael’s Medical Center, an acute care facility specializing in emergency medicine, surgery, and chronic disease management. The focus of the interview was on communication delays between nursing staff and physicians during emergencies, especially during patient handovers and critical care interventions.

Previous attempts to address this issue included implementing a standardized handoff tool, though adherence to the tool was inconsistent. Staff training and communication workshops were also introduced, but sustaining improvements proved challenging. Despite the organization having a supportive culture, staff often work independently from each other, leveraging specific expertise in separate disciplines, which at times leads to fragmentation. The interviewee emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration to improve patient outcomes and stressed the need for a stronger communication framework and engagement strategy to facilitate consistent teamwork.

The interview employed open-ended questions to gather comprehensive information, encouraging detailed responses and allowing the conversation to flow naturally (Slade & Sergent, 2023). It was semi-structured, guided by specific queries but flexible enough to explore emerging topics. Active listening techniques, such as paraphrasing and clarification, were used to validate understanding and promote further elaboration on key points (Slade & Sergent, 2023). This approach provided deeper insights into the organizational culture, communication challenges, and interdisciplinary experiences. Additionally, contextual prompts were utilized to identify both successful and unsuccessful organizational strategies. The interview concluded with a summary to confirm the accuracy of the gathered information and offer the interviewee an opportunity to share any additional perspectives.

Issue Identification

A primary issue identified in the interview was the communication breakdown between nurses and physicians during patient handovers and critical care situations. These communication gaps sometimes lead to care delays, confusion, and patient safety risks. An evidence-based interdisciplinary approach is necessary because it enables multiple healthcare professionals to collaborate and take collective responsibility for improving communication among themselves and with patients. This approach aims to enhance healthcare coordination and patient outcomes (Simons et al., 2022).

A multi-disciplinary team engagement can help implement standardized communication tools like structured handoff protocols. Research has shown that staff can be trained in teamwork to improve communication and build trust among colleagues (Eva et al., 2024). Additionally, interdisciplinary methods foster continuous feedback and innovation, leading to sustainable improvements. By developing a collaborative environment rooted in mutual respect and teamwork, healthcare teams can create a more cohesive and communicative setting that supports safe, high-quality care delivery.

Change Theory and an Interdisciplinary Solution

Kurt Lewin’s Change Theory is a valuable framework for organizational change in healthcare settings due to its simplicity and adaptability. The theory consists of three stages: unfreezing, changing, and refreezing (Smith et al., 2022). The theory is particularly relevant for addressing communication challenges.

The ‘unfreezing’ stage involves recognizing communication gaps and raising awareness about their impact on patient outcomes. During the “changing” stage, interdisciplinary interventions, such as structured communication protocols (e.g., SBAR) and joint training sessions, can be introduced. The ‘refreezing’ stage focuses on reinforcing the new communication practices through continuous monitoring, feedback, and leadership support. This peer-reviewed approach shows how Lewin’s Change Theory can successfully facilitate organizational change using interdisciplinary collaboration, leading to long-term improvements (Smith et al., 2022).

Leadership Strategy and an Interdisciplinary Solution

Transformational leadership is an effective strategy for addressing communication breakdowns between nurses and physicians. Transformational leaders help their teams achieve a common goal through innovation and growth, fostering open communication, mentorship, and trust across departments.

NURS FPX 4005 Assessment 2

By promoting teamwork and information sharing, transformational leaders can model desired behaviors and encourage staff to adopt standardized handoff protocols (Jankelová & Joniaková, 2021). Additionally, transformational leaders play a crucial role in supporting training programs and tracking progress. The evidence from peer-reviewed studies validates the impact of transformational leadership on improving interdisciplinary collaboration and patient care outcomes (Jankelová & Joniaková, 2021). These findings provide credibility to the leadership strategies recommended for driving meaningful and sustainable change in healthcare settings.

Collaboration Approach for Interdisciplinary Teams

The TeamSTEPPS framework is a highly effective approach to improving teamwork and communication among healthcare professionals. This evidence-based model fosters collaboration between nurses and physicians through clear communication, mutual respect, and shared goals (Hassan et al., 2024).

It includes structured team training, role clarification, and feedback mechanisms that can help resolve communication breakdowns during patient handovers. By adopting the TeamSTEPPS framework, healthcare organizations can cultivate a collaborative culture where all team members understand their roles and responsibilities. This leads to better coordination, fewer errors, and improved patient outcomes (Hassan et al., 2024). The framework is well-supported by evidence, making it a credible and practical approach for tackling communication challenges in healthcare environments.

Conclusion

This paper highlights the importance of addressing communication breakdowns through interdisciplinary collaboration. By applying Lewin’s Change Theory, transformational leadership strategies, and evidence-based frameworks like TeamSTEPPS, healthcare organizations can foster a cohesive, collaborative environment. This will improve communication, teamwork, and patient outcomes, while also supporting sustainable organizational improvements.

References

Eva, T. P., Afroze, R., & Sarker, M. A. R. (2024). The impact of leadership, communication, and teamwork practices on employee trust in the workplace. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 12(3), 241–261. https://doi.org/10.2478/mdke-2024-0015

Hassan, A. E., Mohammed, F. A., Zakaria, A. M., & Ibrahim, I. A. (2024). Evaluating the effect of TeamSTEPPS on teamwork perceptions and patient safety culture among newly graduated nurses. BMC Nursing, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-024-01850-y

Jankelová, N., & Joniaková, Z. (2021). Communication skills and transformational leadership style of first-line nurse managers in relation to job satisfaction of nurses and moderators of this relationship. Healthcare, 9(3), 346. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9030346

Simons, M., Goossensen, A., & Nies, H. (2022). Interventions fostering interdisciplinary and inter-organizational collaboration in health and social care; an integrative literature review. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice, 28(28), 100515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2022.100515

Slade, S., & Sergent, S. R. (2023). Interview techniques. PubMed; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK526083/

NURS FPX 4005 Assessment 2

Smith, T. G., Norasi, H., Herbst, K. M., Kendrick, M. L., Curry, T. B., Grantcharov, T. P., Palter, V. N., Hallbeck, M. S., & Cleary, S. P. (2022). Creating a practical transformational change management model for novel artificial intelligence–enabled technology implementation in the operating room. Mayo Clinic Proceedings: Innovations, Quality & Outcomes, 6(6), 584–596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocpiqo.2022.09.004