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The importance of relational coordination and reciprocal learning for chronic illness care within primary care teams.

ABSTRACT: Recent research from a complexity theory perspective suggests that implementation of complex models of care, such as the Chronic Care Model (CCM), requires strong relationships and learning capacities among primary care teams.Our primary aim was to assess the extent to which practice member perceptions of relational coordination and reciprocal learning were associated with the presence of CCM elements in community-based primary care practices.We used baseline measures from a cluster randomized controlled trial testing a practice facilitation intervention to implement the CCM and improve risk factor control for patients with Type 2 diabetes in small primary care practices. Practice members (i.e., physicians, nonphysician providers, and staff) completed baseline assessments, which included the Relational Coordination Scale, Reciprocal Learning Scale, and the Assessment of Chronic Illness Care (ACIC) survey, along with items assessing individual and clinic characteristics. To assess the association between Relational Coordination, Reciprocal Learning, and ACIC, we used a series of hierarchical linear regression models accounting for clustering of individual practice members within clinics and controlling for individual- and practice-level characteristics and tested for mediation effects.A total of 283 practice members from 39 clinics completed baseline measures. Relational Coordination scores were significantly and positively associated with ACIC scores (Model 1). When Reciprocal Learning was added, Relational Coordination remained a significant yet notably attenuated predictor of ACIC (Model 2). The mediation effect was significant (z = 9.3, p < .01); 24% of the association between Relational Coordination and ACIC scores was explained by Reciprocal Learning. Of the individual- and practice-level covariates included in Model 3, only the presence of an electronic medical record was significant; Relational Coordination and Reciprocal Learning remained significant independent predictors of ACIC.Efforts to implement complex models of care should incorporate strategies to strengthen relational coordination and reciprocal learning among team members.

SUBMITTER: Noel PH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3383880 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jan-Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The importance of relational coordination and reciprocal learning for chronic illness care within primary care teams.

Noël Polly Hitchcock PH Lanham Holly J HJ Palmer Ray F RF Leykum Luci K LK Parchman Michael L ML

Health care management review 20130101 1

<h4>Background</h4>Recent research from a complexity theory perspective suggests that implementation of complex models of care, such as the Chronic Care Model (CCM), requires strong relationships and learning capacities among primary care teams.<h4>Purposes</h4>Our primary aim was to assess the extent to which practice member perceptions of relational coordination and reciprocal learning were associated with the presence of CCM elements in community-based primary care practices.<h4>Methodology/a ...[more]

PMID: 22310483

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Project description:Effective delivery of healthcare is highly interdependent within and between interprofessional (IP) care teams and the patients they serve. This is particularly true for complex health conditions such as advanced heart failure (AHF). Our Academic Practice Partnership received funding to carry out IP workforce development with inpatient AHF care teams. Our objectives were to (a) identify challenges in team functioning that affected communication and relationships among the AHF care teams, (b) collaboratively identify a focal work process in need of improvement, and (c) test whether facilitated the implementation of team training and work process changes would lead to improvements in team communication, relationships, and process outcomes. The health-care team identified implementation of structured IP bedside rounds (SIBR) as the preferred approach to improving collaborative care. Utilizing a cross-sectional pre/post design, changes in team communication and relationships before and after a team intervention that included TeamSTEPPS training and SIBR implementation, were assessed using a validated Relational Coordination (RC) survey. The study population included AHF care team members (n ~ 100) representing seven workgroups (e.g., nurses, pharmacists) from two inpatient cardiology units at a 450-bed academic medical center in the Pacific Northwest during 2015-2016. Improvements in RC scores were demonstrated across all seven RC dimensions from baseline (Year 1) to follow-up (Year 2). Percent change on each of the seven dimensions ranged from 3.57% to 9.85%. Changes were statistically significant for improvements between baseline and follow-up on all but one of the seven RC dimensions (shared knowledge). The IP team intervention was associated with improvements in RC from baseline to follow-up. Additional research is needed to assess patient perspectives and outcomes of the IP team intervention. Findings of this study are consistent with the growing body of RC and SIBR research and provide a useful model of an IP team-based intervention in clinical practice.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Improving care coordination is a key priority for many healthcare systems. However, initiatives to improve care coordination are complex to implement and have produced mixed results. A better understanding of how to craft and support implementation of effective care coordination strategies is needed. OBJECTIVE:To identify and understand the challenges and factors encountered by Patient-Aligned Care Team (PACT) staff in performing care coordination tasks in outpatient clinics in the Veterans Health Administration (VA). DESIGN:Qualitative study using semi-structured formative evaluation interviews. PARTICIPANTS:Fourteen interviews with 18 clinical frontline managers and staff from 12 clinic sites across five VA health systems. INTERVENTIONS:This paper reports on baseline data collected for the Coordination Toolkit and Coaching (CTAC) project. CTAC aims to improve patients' experience of care coordination within VA primary care and between PACT and other outpatient and community settings. APPROACH:We conducted pre-implementation telephone interviews with frontline managers and staff, primarily nurse managers. KEY RESULTS:PACT staff described challenges in aligning care coordination priorities across different levels of the VA system, including staff, patients, and leadership. Additionally, PACT staff noted challenges coordinating care both within and outside the VA, and identified resource barriers impeding their care coordination efforts. To address these challenges, staff made several recommendations for improvement, including (1) contingency staffing to address staff burnout; (2) additional PACT training for new staff; (3) clarification of care coordination roles and responsibilities; and (4) and care coordination initiatives that align both with centrally initiated care coordination programs and frontline needs. CONCLUSION:In the VA and similarly complex healthcare systems, our findings suggest the need for care coordination strategies that are buttressed by a system-level vision for care coordination, backed up by clear roles and responsibilities for information exchange between primary care staff and other settings, and multidimensional accountability metrics that encompass patient-, staff-, and system-level goals.

Project description:BackgroundThe Compensation and Pension (C&P) determination process is a potential gateway to accessing pain treatment in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). However, attitudes about C&P as a gateway and about collaboration with C&P clinics among VHA staff are unknown.MethodsIn preparation for an initiative to link veterans seeking compensation for musculoskeletal disorders to treatment, clinical and administrative staff from the 8 VHA medical centers in New England were invited to complete a relational coordination survey that examined how different workgroups collaborate (communication and relationships) to provide pain care to veterans. A subset of those staff also participated in a semistructured interview about pain treatment referral practices within their medical centers. VHA staff were from primary care, administration, pain management, and C&P teams.ResultsEighty-three VHA staff were invited to complete the relational coordination survey; 66 completed the survey and 39 participated in the semistructured interview. Most C&P staff interviewed thought of the compensation examination as a forensic process and that C&P-based efforts to engage veterans might interfere with the examination or were not their responsibility. However, some examiners described their efforts to determine new veterans' eligibility for VHA care and to connect them to specific treatments. VHA staff reported that there was little communication between the C&P team and other teams. The survey results supported this finding. The C&P group's relational coordination composite scores were lower than any other workgroup.ConclusionOutreach to veterans at New England C&P clinics was inconsistent, and C&P teams rated low on a measure of coordination with workgroups involved in pain treatment. Compensation examinations appear to be underused opportunities to help veterans access treatment. C&P-based treatment engagement is feasible; it is being done by some Compensation teams.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Patients with mental illness are frequently treated in primary care, where Primary Care Providers (PCPs) report feeling ill-equipped to manage their care. Team-based models of care improve outcomes for patients with mental illness, but multiple barriers limit adoption. Barriers include practical issues and psychosocial factors associated with the reorganization of care. Practice facilitation can improve implementation, but does not directly address the psychosocial factors or gaps in PCP skills in managing mental illness. To address these gaps, we developed Relational Team Development (RELATED). METHODS:RELATED is an implementation strategy combining practice facilitation and psychology clinical supervision methodologies to improve implementation of team-based care. It includes PCP-level clinical coaching and a team-level practice change activity. We performed a preliminary assessment of RELATED with a convergent parallel mixed method study in 2 primary care clinics in an urban Federally Qualified Health Center in Southwest, USA, 2017-2018. Study participants included PCPs, clinic staff, and patient representatives. Clinic staff and patients were recruited for the practice change activity only. Primary outcomes were feasibility and acceptability. Feasibility was assessed as ease of recruitment and implementation. Acceptability was measured in surveys of PCPs and staff and focus groups. We conducted semi-structured focus groups with 3 participant groups in each clinic: PCPs; staff and patients; and leadership. Secondary outcomes were change in pre- post- intervention PCP self-efficacy in mental illness management and team-based care. We conducted qualitative observations to better understand clinic climate. RESULTS:We recruited 18 PCPs, 17 staff members, and 3 patient representatives. We ended recruitment early due to over recruitment. Both clinics developed and implemented practice change activities. The mean acceptability score was 3.7 (SD=0.3) on a 4-point Likert scale. PCPs had a statistically significant increase in their mental illness management self-efficacy [change = 0.9, p-value= <.01]. Focus group comments were largely positive, with PCPs requesting additional coaching. CONCLUSIONS:RELATED was feasible and highly acceptable. It led to positive changes in PCP self-efficacy in Mental Illness Management. If confirmed as an effective implementation strategy, RELATED has the potential to significantly impact implementation of evidence-based interventions for patients with mental illness in primary care.

Project description:BackgroundRehabilitation services depend on competent professionals who collaborate effectively. Well-functioning interprofessional teams are expected to positively impact continuity of care. Key factors in continuity of care are communication and collaboration among health care professionals in a team and their patients. This study assessed the associations between team functioning and patient-reported benefits and continuity of care in somatic rehabilitation centres.MethodsThis prospective cohort study uses survey data from 984 patients and from health care professionals in 15 teams in seven somatic rehabilitation centres in Western Norway. Linear mixed effect models were used to investigate associations between the interprofessional team communication and relationship scores (measured by the Relational Coordination [RC] Survey and patient-reported benefit and personal-, team- and cross-boundary continuity of care. Patient-reported continuity of care was measured using the Norwegian version of the Nijmegen Continuity Questionnaire.ResultsThe mean communication score for healthcare teams was 3.9 (standard deviation [SD]?=?0.63, 95% confidence interval [CI]?=?3.78, 4.00), and the mean relationship score was 4.1 (SD?=?0.56, 95% CI?=?3.97, 4.18). Communication scores in rehabilitation teams varied from 3.4-4.3 and relationship scores from 3.6-4.5. Patients treated by teams with higher relationship scores experienced better continuity between health care professionals in the team at the rehabilitation centre (b?=?0.36, 95% CI?=?0.05, 0.68; p =?0.024). There was a positive association between RC communication in the team the patient was treated by and patient-reported activities of daily living benefit score; all other associations between RC scores and rehabilitation benefit scores were not significant.ConclusionTeam function is associated with better patient-reported continuity of care and higher ADL-benefit scores among patients after rehabilitation. These findings indicate that interprofessional teams' RC scores may predict rehabilitation outcomes, but further studies are needed before RC scores can be used as a quality indicator in somatic rehabilitation.

Project description:AimThe aim of the study was to describe practices that support collaboration in interprofessional primary health care teams, and identify performance indicators perceived to measure the impact of this collaboration from the perspective of interprofessional health providers.BackgroundDespite the surge of interprofessional primary health care models implemented across Canada, there is little evidence as to whether or not the intended outcomes of primary health care teams have been achieved. Part of the challenge is determining the most appropriate measures that can demonstrate the value of collaborative care. To date, little remains known about performance measurement from the providers contributing to the collaborative care process in interprofessional primary care teams. Having providers from a range of disciplinary backgrounds assist in the development of performance measures can help identify measures most relevant to demonstrate the value of collaborative care on the intended outcomes of interprofessional primary care models.MethodsA qualitative study; part of a larger mixed methods developmental evaluation to examine performance measurement in interprofessional primary health care teams. A stakeholder workshop was conducted at an annual association meeting of interprofessional primary health care teams in the province of Ontario, Canada. Six questions guided the workshop groups and participant responses were documented on worksheets and flip charts. All responses were collected and entered verbatim into a word document. Qualitative analytic strategies were applied to each question.FindingsA total of 283 primary health care providers from 14 health professions working in interprofessional primary health care teams participated. Top three elements of interprofessional collaboration (total n = 628) were communication (n = 146), co-treatment (n = 112) and patient-based conferences (n = 81). Top three performance indicators currently used to demonstrate the value of interprofessional collaboration (total n = 241) were patient experience (n = 71), patient health status (n = 35) and within team referrals (n = 30).

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The importance of relational coordination and reciprocal learning for chronic illness care within primary care teams.

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The importance of relational coordination and reciprocal learning for chronic illness care within primary care teams.

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