Nursing teamwork and time to respond to call lights: an exploratory study

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Science
• Patient Care Delivery

Background:

• Teamwork is recognized for enhancing productivity in healthcare settings.
• This study investigates the link between nursing teamwork and patient call light response times.
• Call light response time serves as a key indicator of unit productivity and responsiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the correlation between nursing teamwork levels and call light answering times in acute care units.
• To assess if overall teamwork or specific teamwork components influence patient response times.
• To identify factors within nursing teams that may impact the efficiency of patient call light responses.

Main Methods:

• The study involved administering the Nursing Teamwork Survey to nursing staff across 18 inpatient units in 3 hospitals.
• Data on call light response times were collected using electronic systems.
• The survey assessed overall teamwork and five distinct subscales, including shared mental models.

Main Results:

• No significant correlation was found between overall nursing teamwork scores and call light response times.
• Similarly, no significant relationship was observed between the five teamwork subscales and call light response times.
• A moderate correlation was identified between shared mental models and call light answering times.

Conclusions:

• Shared mental models, defined as a common understanding of team roles and responsibilities, appear to be associated with quicker call light responses.
• The 'it's not my job syndrome,' where staff avoid tasks outside their direct assignment, may be mitigated by strong shared mental models.
• Further research with a larger sample size is recommended to validate the association between shared mental models and call light response times.