The art and science of teamwork: enacting a transdisciplinary approach in work rehabilitation

Teamwork, collaboration and interprofessional care are becoming the new standard in health care, and service delivery in work practice is no exception. Most rehabilitation professionals believe that they intuitively know how to work collaboratively with others such as workers, employers, insurers and other professionals. However, little information is available that can assist rehabilitation professionals in enacting authentic transdisciplinary approaches in work practice contexts. A qualitative study was designed using a grounded theory approach, comprised of observations and interviews, to understand the social processes among team members in enacting a transdisciplinary approach in a work rehabilitation clinic. Findings suggest that team members consciously attended to a team approach through nurturing consensus, nurturing professional synergy, and nurturing a learning culture. These processes enabled this team to work in concert with clients who had chronic disabilities in achieving solution focused goals for returning to work and improving functioning. Implications for achieving greater collaborative synergies among stakeholders in return to work settings and in the training of new rehabilitation professionals are explored.