Interprofessional teamwork in stroke care: Is it visible or important to patients and carers?

Abstract

Interprofessional teamwork is seen in healthcare policy and practice as a key strategy for providing safe, efficient and holistic healthcare and is an accepted part of evidence-based stroke care. The impact of interprofessional teamwork on patient and carer experience(s) of care is unknown, although some research suggests a relationship might exist. This study aimed to explore patient and carer perceptions of good and poor teamwork and its impact on experiences of care. Critical incident interviews were conducted with 50 patients and 33 carers in acute, inpatient rehabilitation and community phases of care within two UK stroke care pathways. An analytical framework, derived from a realist synthesis of 13 ‘mechanisms’ (processes) of interprofessional teamwork, was used to identify positive and negative ‘indicators’ of teamwork. Participants identified several mechanisms of teamwork, but it was not a subject most talked about readily. This suggests that interprofessional teamwork is not a concept that is particularly important to stroke patients and carers; they do not readily perceive any impacts of teamwork on their experiences. These findings are a salient reminder that what might be expected by healthcare professionals to be important influences on experience may not be perceived to be so by patients and carers.

• Interprofessional care
• mixed methods
• service users
• teamwork

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Sally Redfern, Sally Brearley, Vari Drennan, Ann Mackenzie, Mark Joy, Geoff Cloud, Lalit Kalra and the Service User and Carer Advisory Group for their advice. We would also like to thank the patient and carer participants for their time.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article. This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research Service Delivery and Organisation programme (Project number 08/1819/219), Southampton, Hampshire, UK. The views and opinions expressed therein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the SDO programme, NIHR, NHS or the Department of Health.