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. 2024 Jan 13;24(1):71.
doi: 10.1186/s12913-024-10555-6.

Behavioral sciences applied to acute care teams: a research agenda for the years ahead by a European research network

Sandra Keller  1   2 , Judith G M Jelsma  3 , Franziska Tschan  4 , Nick Sevdalis  5 , Ruth M Löllgen  6   7 , Johan Creutzfeldt  8   9 , Lauren R Kennedy-Metz  10   11   12 , Walter Eppich  13 , Norbert K Semmer  14 , Isabelle Van Herzeele  15 , Karin Pukk Härenstam  6   16 , Martine C de Bruijne  3
Affiliations

Behavioral sciences applied to acute care teams: a research agenda for the years ahead by a European research network

Sandra Keller et al. BMC Health Serv Res. .

Abstract

Background: Multi-disciplinary behavioral research on acute care teams has focused on understanding how teams work and on identifying behaviors characteristic of efficient and effective team performance. We aimed to define important knowledge gaps and establish a research agenda for the years ahead of prioritized research questions in this field of applied health research.

Methods: In the first step, high-priority research questions were generated by a small highly specialized group of 29 experts in the field, recruited from the multinational and multidisciplinary "Behavioral Sciences applied to Acute care teams and Surgery (BSAS)" research network - a cross-European, interdisciplinary network of researchers from social sciences as well as from the medical field committed to understanding the role of behavioral sciences in the context of acute care teams. A consolidated list of 59 research questions was established. In the second step, 19 experts attending the 2020 BSAS annual conference quantitatively rated the importance of each research question based on four criteria - usefulness, answerability, effectiveness, and translation into practice. In the third step, during half a day of the BSAS conference, the same group of 19 experts discussed the prioritization of the research questions in three online focus group meetings and established recommendations.

Results: Research priorities identified were categorized into six topics: (1) interventions to improve team process; (2) dealing with and implementing new technologies; (3) understanding and measuring team processes; (4) organizational aspects impacting teamwork; (5) training and health professions education; and (6) organizational and patient safety culture in the healthcare domain. Experts rated the first three topics as particularly relevant in terms of research priorities; the focus groups identified specific research needs within each topic.

Conclusions: Based on research priorities within the BSAS community and the broader field of applied health sciences identified through this work, we advocate for the prioritization for funding in these areas.

Keywords: Acute care; Research agenda; Surgery; Teamwork.

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Conflict of interest statement

RML receives per diem honoraria from Paedsim e.V. for interprofessional team training.

NS is the director of the London Safety and Training Solutions Ltd, which offers training in patient safety, implementation solutions and human factors to healthcare organisations and the pharmaceutical industry.

IvH is supported by a Senior Clinical Fellowship (802314N), Fund for Scientific Research – Flanders, Belgium.

MdB, JJ, SK, FT, JC, LKM, WE, NKS, KPH declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow diagram of the processing of the research questions generated by the experts
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Mean, SD and significant differences across the weighted prioritization of the research topics. * p < .05 Footnote below the figure The X-axis shows the mean of the priority weighted research question (between 0 and 5) per category presented at the Y axis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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