Teamwork in the operating room

Sexton, J. B., Makary, M., Tersigni, A., Pryor, D., Hendrich, A., Thomas, E., Holzmueller, C., Knight, A. P., Wu, Y., & Pronovost, P. (2006). Teamwork in the operating room: Frontline perspectives among hospital and operating room personnel. Anesthesiology, 105, 877-884.

Background & Conclusions. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations is proposing that hospitals measure culture beginning in 2007.However, a reliable and widely used measurement tool for the operating room (OR) setting does not currently exist. Rigorous assessment of teamwork climate is possible using this psychometrically sound teamwork climate scale. This tool and initial benchmarks allow others to compare their teamwork climate to national means, in an effort to focus more on what excellent surgical teams do well.