Respond to at TWO of your classmates' postings. minimum of 1-2 paragraphs

Week Four Discussion 2

Respond to at two of your classmates' postings. Do not simply agree. Provide substantive feedback.

Jasmeen Behniwal

           Eric Dishman, a social scientist and researcher for intel, focuses on the topic of “Healthcare Should Be a Team Sport” in his TedTalk. The lack of teamwork in healthcare is a very common problem faced in our healthcare system. Improving teamwork would improve the continuum of care leading to better patient health outcomes. It would lead to better care for the patient, more appreciation for the healthcare team, increased motivation and trust amongst the team.  

Team-based care improves safety, efficiency, as well as healthcare quality, especially if we use each team members unique skills provide advanced care. Efficiency in teams is due to the presence of a clear and common understanding of everyone’s responsibilities, allowing for team members to work more effectively. Multidisciplinary meetings and team huddles are important techniques to help improve this (James, 2021).  For example, in Mr. Dishman’s case, due to a lack in communication, three different providers prescribed the same medicine which caused him to be hospitalized. This could have been prevented by simple relaying of information.  I have seen that during shift changes, it is more likely to occur that the patient care team would forget to relay an important piece of information as this could be to burnout or even a general lack of diligence. 

Eric Dishman mentions a point about technology used for improving healthcare and that it is very beneficial for patients and healthcare organizations. However, at the end of the day, no matter how much technology is available, it is up to us to care for each other. This is a great point to raise because we cannot blindly trust technology as it is bound to errors like how people make medical errors. Great results can be achieved by combining technology and that extra care to the patients. 

Reference 

Dishman, E. (2013, April 11). Eric Dishman: Health care should be a team sport. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VT3XyORCFDA 

James, T. A. (2021, August 6). Teamwork as a core value in health care. Teamwork as a Core Value in Health Care | HMS Postgraduate Education. https://postgraduateeducation.hms.harvard.edu/trends-medicine/teamwork-core-value-health-care 

Jonathan Kwakye

    Eric Dishman's video presented some important concepts that were learned throughout this course. A strong emphasis was placed on technological advancements,  access to healthcare, and systems thinking.

    Eric Dishman demonstrated a concept of telehealth where he was able to consult with his doctor in a live setting. With the use of technology, he was able to show the video and still pictures of his ultrasounds while communicating simultaneously with his doctor. In a little bit over 20 years, this kind of health practice was impossible. Technological advancement has now made such practices possible and will provide a lot of benefits to ensure patient safety and quality improvement.

     Patients and health providers can now reduce the costs of healthcare by administering care aside from the brick-and-mortar structures that hospitals have been historically known to be made of. By receiving care in the comfort of patients' homes, the vulnerability to hospital-acquired infections will be reduced significantly as well as the cost for it. For instance in Eric's video, he acquired 'bedsores and other infections when he was receiving care as a kid in the hospital. These kinds of infections could be significantly eliminated when people receive care in the comfort of their homes. Thanks to technological advancements. Additionally, the cost of care is significantly reduced as the use of the hospital facility and equipment are not needed in such practices.

     Lastly, he discussed the importance of system thinking and its application to healthcare. He explained eloquently how a health team consisting of the patient and the different components of health services providers can come together for a common goal and work together for a successful outcome. This ties in so well with systems thinking, where the whole is more than the sum of its parts. In his examples, those six doctors who worked independently to diagnose him were typical examples of non-system thinking. That kind of practice, although having good intentions often results in errors and unsuccessful outcomes. It is therefore important for the systems thinking approach to be adopted when it comes to healthcare.

    These concepts have reemphasized my belief in systems thinking. By adopting systems thinking in health leadership, we can ensure a team approach to doing things. This approach will yield highly successful outcomes and encourage a quality improvement and patient safety culture. 

References

Dishman, E. (2013, April 11). Ted Talk: Health care should be a team sport. YouTube. Retrieved November 18, 2022, from  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VT3XyORCFDA

Joshi, M., Ransom, S. B., Ransom, E. R., & Nash, D. B. (2014). The Healthcare Quality Book: Vision, strategy, and Tools. Health Administration Press.