Healthcare delivery in the United States faces increasing demands for quality, safety, and efficiency. Medical practice administrators, owners, and IT managers play an important role in guiding their organizations toward these goals. One of the most effective ways to improve healthcare team performance and patient safety is by using evidence-based team training programs. These programs focus on improving communication, leadership, situation awareness, and teamwork among both clinical and nonclinical staff. This article discusses why these training programs matter, what they include, their benefits, and how artificial intelligence (AI) and workflow automation help create safer, more efficient healthcare environments.
Experts agree that good communication and teamwork are key to better patient results, fewer medical errors, improved efficiency, and increased patient satisfaction. Jay Bhatt, M.D., President and CEO of the Health Research & Educational Trust and Chief Medical Officer of the American Hospital Association, points out that both clinical and nonclinical staff need to communicate and work well together to lower mistakes and improve care.
Medical errors remain a big problem that affects patient safety in hospitals and medical offices. Poor communication among healthcare team members is a top cause of preventable harmful events. For healthcare administrators, this means training should focus not just on individual skills but on team skills, too.
Two important programs used in the U.S. healthcare system to improve teamwork are TeamSTEPPS® and the American Organization of Nurse Executives’ (AONE) Care Innovation and Transformation (CIT) program. Both programs are based on research done over many years and focus on structured ways to improve communication and teamwork abilities.
TeamSTEPPS, which stands for Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety, was created by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and the U.S. Department of Defense. It builds on more than 25 years of research about how teams perform in healthcare settings.
The 2023 update, TeamSTEPPS 3.0, added ideas about involving patients and families more actively. This reflects the growing role of patients and their caregivers as part of the healthcare team. The program has four main parts:
Many healthcare groups across the U.S., like Duke University Health System, MetroHealth in Cleveland, Northwell Health in New York, and UW Medicine in Seattle, have started using TeamSTEPPS to build safer workplaces and improve teamwork.
TeamSTEPPS offers many resources for medical practice managers and trainers, including training videos, tools to measure team performance, quick guides, and mobile apps. These tools make it easier to use the program in places like outpatient clinics, hospitals, and community health centers.
The AONE’s CIT program focuses on quick quality improvement led by staff who work directly with patients. This program does more than teach teamwork skills. It helps healthcare workers brainstorm ideas, solve problems, measure results, and try new ways to improve care. The program promotes shared leadership where every team member is responsible for quality, safety, and patient satisfaction.
Studies show CIT helps healthcare organizations get better by involving frontline providers in testing changes. This shared responsibility leads to lasting improvements and practical solutions based on staff feedback. For medical practice administrators and owners, CIT offers a clear way to involve their teams in quality improvements that fit with daily work and patient care needs.
Including patients and families in the care process has gained attention as a key part of safety and quality improvements. Programs at places like Baptist Medical Center Attala in Mississippi show how involving patients and families in care activities, such as leadership rounding, can be valuable.
Research finds that when patients and families take part in care planning and decisions, the number of harmful events goes down. They also understand tests, procedures, and discharge plans better. Including patients and families helps make care transitions safer and improves satisfaction.
For healthcare administrators, creating ways to involve patients and families as active team members helps reduce errors and improve communication. It closes possible gaps between those giving care and those receiving it.
Along with team training, tools like checklists and error reporting systems improve patient safety by standardizing tasks and increasing openness. A 2024 review showed that using checklists can cut medication errors and surgical problems by making steps clear and helping teamwork.
Error reporting systems encourage staff to report incidents without fear of blame. This helps create a culture of openness that finds weak spots and risks in the system. It lets organizations fix problems early and learn from mistakes.
However, these tools work best when staff are engaged and supported. Medical administrators must create a setting where team members feel comfortable and motivated to use these tools regularly.
The U.S. healthcare system is complex and has many rules. Because of this, team training programs need to be flexible. Both TeamSTEPPS and CIT offer frameworks that can fit different sizes and types of healthcare groups, from big academic hospitals to small outpatient clinics.
Since healthcare regulators and safety groups focus on reporting and quality improvement, using these training programs meets federal and state rules. Also, these programs help organizations follow standards from groups like The Joint Commission, which can help during inspections and quality checks.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and workflow automation are technologies that support team training goals. They help improve communication, manage tasks, and keep information flowing within healthcare teams.
One example of AI use is in front-office phone automation and answering services, such as those from Simbo AI. By automating routine tasks like appointment scheduling, patient questions, and sharing information, AI reduces the workload on staff. This improves efficiency and lowers communication mistakes that can lead to unhappy patients or safety problems.
AI systems can also help clinical teams by giving real-time support, warning about safety issues, and making sure the right information reaches the right team members quickly. For example, AI alerts can notify teams about important lab results, medication issues, or changes in patient condition. This helps with situation monitoring, which is a key skill in TeamSTEPPS.
Workflow automation simplifies routine activities, letting healthcare providers spend more time on direct patient care and clearer communication. Automating tasks like patient check-ins or updating care plans reduces delays and errors from manual work.
For IT managers, combining AI with evidence-based team training helps build a safer and more efficient clinical setting. These technologies support goals of TeamSTEPPS and CIT by making communication easier and strengthening team support.
Medical practice administrators and owners who want to use these programs can find many free and paid resources. The American Hospital Association and HRET offer TeamSTEPPS training materials and run both in-person and online courses. There are also yearly national conferences for ongoing learning and sharing of best practices.
The AONE Care Innovation and Transformation program provides structured lessons and mentoring to teach quick quality improvement methods. These programs help organizations adapt their approach based on their size, specialty, and goals.
Improving healthcare team performance and building a culture of safety are important challenges in U.S. healthcare. Evidence-based team training programs like TeamSTEPPS and the AONE Care Innovation and Transformation offer clear ways to build key skills in communication, leadership, situation monitoring, and mutual support.
Patient and family involvement, along with safety tools such as checklists and error reporting, make these efforts stronger. Using AI and workflow automation also helps by improving communication and reducing administrative work, making teamwork easier to practice.
For medical practice administrators, owners, and IT managers, adopting these evidence-based methods is a smart way to invest in patient safety, better care, and smoother operations that meet current demands of the U.S. healthcare system.
Effective communication and teamwork among clinical and nonclinical staff enhance patient outcomes, prevent medical errors, improve efficiency, and increase patient satisfaction, thereby significantly improving patient safety in healthcare settings.
TeamSTEPPS is an evidence-based program designed to optimize team performance and patient safety. Developed by AHRQ and the U.S. Department of Defense, it focuses on communication, leading teams, situation monitoring, and mutual support to help healthcare teams respond swiftly and effectively.
Duke University Health System, MetroHealth in Cleveland, Northwell Health in New York, and UW Medicine in Seattle are notable health systems that have adopted TeamSTEPPS to foster a culture of safety and improve team-based care.
TeamSTEPPS provides free access to in-person and online training courses, an annual national conference, instructional materials, videos, and webinars coordinated by HRET, promoting widespread adoption of teamwork and communication best practices.
The CIT program emphasizes rapid-cycle quality improvement, problem solving, brainstorming, data utilization, and shared leadership among team members, empowering front-line staff to innovate and lead change for improved quality, safety, and patient outcomes.
Engaging patients and families in their care plans increases understanding of tests, procedures, and expected outcomes, reducing adverse events and promoting safer, more effective care delivery.
Baptist Medical Center Attala implemented an inpatient leadership rounding program as part of an HRET fellowship, which focuses on enhancing patient and family engagement to improve safety and care quality in a rural hospital setting.
Research indicates a direct correlation where increased patient and family engagement corresponds with fewer adverse events, highlighting engagement as essential to enhancing patient safety.
Effective teamwork and collaboration reduce the likelihood of medical errors by clarifying roles, ensuring better communication, and fostering mutual support among healthcare providers.
A culture of safety, supported by training programs like TeamSTEPPS and CIT, nurtures shared accountability, continuous improvement, and collaborative problem-solving, all essential for high-performing healthcare teams dedicated to patient safety.
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