This essay will discuss and evaluate what a team is and how a team can function successfully, it will also explore the factors that cause a team to be effective or ineffective and the barriers contributing to a dysfunctional team.
Teamwork is a basic but important part of nursing which preregistered nurses are expected to become part of and will eventually perform some form of leadership. Effective teamwork and leadership skills are necessary qualities for a nurse to develop and are important to ensure patient safety (West, 2012).
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2010) state that to work effectively as part of a team you must work cooperatively and respect the skills, expertise and contributions of your colleagues and you must be willing to share your skills and experience for the benefit of your colleagues. This is important in the healthcare setting as patients rely on an efficient, well-motivated team to take care of them. Therefore, this essay will also discuss leadership, discriminating between good and bad, and it will also consider the concept of followership. Furthermore, team building and organisational behaviour will be considered using relevant theories and methods.
A team is a basic functioning unit within an organisation and is defined as a group of people organised to work independently and cooperatively, meeting the given requirements by achieving the same goals and purpose (Heathfield, 2014). Frias-Martinez et al (2004) supports this definition
Katzenbach and Smith (1993a) recognise teams as the basic units of performance in organisations and identify a team as '...a small number of people with complimentary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.'
I believe teamwork is essential in my role as a nurse. I love nursing because it is a structured job. There are policies and procedures to follow, routines to your everyday shift. I am trustworthy. At my job, I am a charge nurse, part of the leadership team that helps to maintain structure on my floor.
A team is something more than a collection of individuals. Teamwork is a group of people working together to achieve the same goal. The whole is more than a sum of the parts. A team can be identified by evidence of some or all of the following:
The nursing teamwork survey is a 33 item questionnaire that finds information from the hospitals’’ staffs concerning the teamwork portrayed among the nurses. Through teamwork, it is expected that there will be an increase in the quality of work and service delivery. The 33-item questionnaire had a Likert type scale that helped in the estimation of the teamwork among nurses by placing them between “always” and “rarely” (Kalisch & Lee, 2011, p. 84). The nursing teamwork survey used literature
What is a team work? Team work can be defined as when actions of individuals are brought together for the purpose of a common goal. Each person in a team puts his efforts to achieve the objectives of large group. Teams make efforts to achieve the success but not necessarily the success is achieved every time. Within a team every member plays a role to achieve the team’s objectives. These roles add new and important dimensions to interactions of team members. Bruce Tuckman’s team development theory provides a way to tackle the tasks of making a team through the completion of the project. On the part of the team every member played an important role to achieve the success at
The book explains that eliminating person agendas, in a team environment is a great way to move forward as a unit. The five dysfunctions of team should not only be read in work environments, but also to sports teams and other groups whose ultimate goal is the have each member function as one. “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” is a simple read that is clear and straight to the point. Furthermore, rhetoric used and the message provided in the text will most likely be shared in hopes to instill the meaning of teamwork into the mind of someone who didn’t have the opportunity to read this book on teamwork and
While historically these teams were spearheaded by phyiscians, team leaders are now based on team objectives instead of a member’s professional status (Porter-O Grady, 2013). These changes have resulted in professional nurses commonly assuming inpte-rprofessional team leader roles (Porter-O Grady, 2013). As inter-professional team leaders, nurses must have knowledge of group dynamics, team characteristics, and also have the skills necessary to effectively manage teams (Porter-O Grady, 2013). According to Porter-O Grady, “facilitation, coordination, and intergration of care” are inheret to the nursing profession and are essential effective nursing practice (2013, p.__ ). These attributes are equally important when leading inter-professional teams because nurses serve as great mediators between patients, team members, and the healthcare organization (Porter-O Grady,
What is teamwork? Teamwork is defined as "a formal work group consisting of people who work together intensely to achieve a common group goal." (University of Phoenix, Apollo Library, 2007). A group becomes a team when members demonstrate a commitment to one another to reach a common goal. There is a high degree of cohesiveness and accomplishment in a team. Simply put two heads are often better than one. (University of Phoenix, Apollo Library, 2007). Teamwork can help us communicate in many ways.
In order to fully explore the nature of team work in healthcare it is importance to first look at what defines a team.A team can be defined as two or more people with specific roles working together to achieve a common purpose(Kalisch & Begeny, 2005). For
This fable was a great way to promote the importance of a team and its functions. This book had many highlights throughout the context and I would highly recommend it to leaders of a corporation or of that of a team like setting. This book offered many great implications of the model and how to use it in many diverse settings when trying to build and manage successful teams.
A major concept that we have learned about in our nursing 182 class is Teamwork. In this concept analysis we will see the conceptualization of teamwork, and critical attributes, related concepts and various cases, and illegitimate uses of team work. Teamwork is essential in the nursing field and this analysis will show just how important it is.
Teams are more than just groups of people assembled in the same area, they are a collection of individuals dedicated to a common purpose and with a series of detailed performance targets, working together with complementary skills. Teams of people are encountered in various scenarios, not just in the workplace, but also throughout life, such as sports, associations, charities and voluntary services.
In the hospital, a team includes a CEO, managers, supervisors, charge nurses, medical doctors, nurses, nursing assistants, social workers and maintenance crews; it can also include many other members. In addition, a well-functioning team is led by a good leader; a leader does not necessary mean the CEO, but someone who is driven, knowledgeable, and a good communicator. Charge nurse and nurses are normally the one that handles the care of patients in the hospital. Both charge nurses and nurses can be considered leaders. It is why, it is very crucial that nurses are good communicators. One would say that nurses are the spoke person of a hospital to its patients. The nurses care for their patient closely, they communicate with the doctors regarding the care of the patient; they communicate with the pharmacies, nursing assistant, colleagues, and many more. Those
If we were randomly asked to define the word “team” many of us would have numerous variations of this multifaceted word; some would proclaim it means helping others, backing one another while others might define it as unanimity or culpability. The French associate the word team, with the slogan “Esprit de corps” a majestic word that was adopted by the United States Marine Corps. This matchless catchphrase means: “a sense of unity, of enthusiasm for common interests and responsibilities.” As early as childhood it has been ingrained into us that teamwork is congenial and effortlessly achieved. When in fact it wasn’t until society was introduced to Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, written by Patrick Lencioni, did civilization start to realize that teamwork is hard to measure and even harder to achieve because the has been loosely used as well as misinterpret. Lencioni understands that teamwork is a difficult thing to measure and achieve, his book reminds us that the power that comes from teamwork cannot be denied. It would be hypothesized that through the authors’ comprehensive exploration and methodical examination, he reveals ways for civilization to comprehend the term as well as employ each other successful; conversely this can’t be done until the dysfunctional factor is properly identified and controlled. Hence the reason for his in-depth plunge in explaining the five dysfunctions and method that can be utilized by teams to overcome the dysfunctionalities.
During my own personal experience in nursing, I have had the opportunity to witness teamwork at its best, and shamefully, teamwork at its worst. During a shift on a neuro critical care floor, I was assisting a nurse turn and change a patient. Nearly every time we shifted the patient, an alarm would sound. Within moments there was a voice on the other side of the curtain asking if help was needed. Next time the alarm sounded; there was the helpful voice again. It never failed. How comforting for the nurse this must feel, and ultimately, better outcomes, as well as safety for the patient. At the other end of the spectrum, I have watched as a nurse asks for help, and is turned down multiple times. I have heard the awful phrase, “that’s not my job.” I have seen patients code, and the nurse spends the next hour caring for that patient including resuscitation, and transferring to an intensive care unit. No one takes the initiative to check on the nurses patients while she is gone, not even the charge nurse. Clearly this is not a positive or safe work environment for anyone. Teamwork