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Teamwork and team decision-making at multidisciplinary cancer conferences: barriers, facilitators, and opportunities
Benjamin W Lamb1, Nick Sevdalis, Sonal Arora
1Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, 5th Floor Medical School Building, St. Mary's Hospital, London, W2 1PG, UK. benjamin.lamb@imperial.ac.uk
Background:
Anecdotally, multidisciplinary cancer conferences (MCCs) do not always function optimally. MCC members' experiences with and attitudes toward MCCs are explored, and barriers to and facilitators of effective team-working are identified.
Methods:
A total of 19 semistructured interviews were conducted with surgeons, oncologists, nurses, and administrators. Interviews explored participants' opinions on MCC attendance, information presentation, case discussion, leadership, team decision-making, and possible improvements to MCC meetings.
Results:
Nonattendance was associated with not having protected time to attend the MCC. Contributions to MCC discussions were unequal among the participants, and patient-centered information was ignored. Good leadership was necessary to foster inclusive case discussion. Members were positive about MCCs, but protected time, improved case selection, and working in a more structured way were possible improvements.
Conclusions:
Results are consistent with previous research: Members of the MCC are positive about the benefits of MCCs, although improving the way MCCs work is a goal.
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