Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jul-Aug;38(4):602-611.
doi: 10.1080/13561820.2024.2343835. Epub 2024 Apr 26.

Decoding healthcare teamwork: a typology of hospital teams

Natalie Sanford  1 , Mary Lavelle  2   3 , Ola Markiewicz  2 , Gabriel Reedy  4 , Dame Anne Marie Rafferty  1 , Lord Ara Darzi  2 , Janet E Anderson  5
Affiliations

Decoding healthcare teamwork: a typology of hospital teams

Natalie Sanford et al. J Interprof Care. 2024 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

The effectiveness of healthcare depends on successful teamwork. Current understanding of teamwork in healthcare is limited due to the complexity of the context, variety of team structures, and unique demands of healthcare work. This qualitative study aimed to identify different types of healthcare teams based on their structure, membership, and function. The study used an ethnographic approach to observe five teams in an English hospital. Data were analyzed using a combined inductive-deductive approach based on the Temporal Observational Analysis of Teamwork framework. A typology was developed, consisting of five team types: structural, hybrid, satellite, responsive, and coordinating. Teams were challenged to varying degrees with staffing, membership instability, equipment shortages, and other elements of the healthcare environment. Teams varied in their ability to respond to these challenges depending on their characteristics, such as their teamworking style, location, and membership. The typology developed in this study can help healthcare organizations to better understand and design effective teams for different healthcare contexts. It can also guide future research on healthcare teams and provide a framework for comparing teams across settings. To improve teamwork, healthcare organizations should consider the unique needs of different team types and design effective training programs accordingly.

Keywords: Adaptive teams; healthcare teamwork; interprofessional teamwork; team design; team typology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Team typology decision tree.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Aloini, D., Ferraro, G., Iovanella, A., & Stefanini, A. (2022). Rethinking healthcare teams’ practices using network science: Implications, challenges, and benefits. Applied Sciences, 12(12), 5841. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/12/5841
    1. Anderson, J. E., Aase, K., Bal, R., Bourrier, M., Braithwaite, J., Nakajima, K., Wiig, S., & Guise, V. (2020). Multilevel influences on resilient healthcare in six countries: An international comparative study protocol. BMJ Open, 10(12), e039158. 10.1136/bmjopen-2020-039158 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Anderson, J. E., Lavelle, M., & Reedy, G. (2021). Understanding adaptive teamwork in health care: Progress and future directions. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, 26(3), 208–214. 10.1177/1355819620978436 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Andreatta, P. B. (2010). A typology for health care teams. Health Care Management Review, 35(4), 345–354. 10.1097/HMR.0b013e3181e9fceb - DOI - PubMed
    1. Babiker, A., El Husseini, M., Al Nemri, A., Al Frayh, A., Al Juryyan, N., Faki, M. O., Assiri, A., Al Saadi, M., Shaikh, F., & Al Zamil, F. (2014). Health care professional development: Working as a team to improve patient care. Sudanese Journal of Paediatrics, 14(2), 9–16. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources