Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 6, 2026
Involving Individuals with Developmental Language Disorder and Their Parents/Carers in Research Priority Setting
Published on: June 6, 2020
When peers count: The effects on integrated type II diabetes care of communication within general practitioner-only
Amelia Compagni1, Patrizio Armeni, Stefano Tasselli
1Amelia Compagni, PhD, is Associate Professor, Department of Policy Analysis and Public Management, Center for Research in Health and Social Care Management, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy. E-mail: amelia.compagni@unibocconi.it. Patrizio Armeni, PhD, is Research Fellow, Center for Research in Health and Social Care Management, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy. E-mail: patrizio.armeni@unibocconi.it. Stefano Tasselli, PhD, is Assistant Professor, Department of Technology and Operations Management, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Background:
Primary care teams (hereafter referred to as primary care units [PCUs]) composed of general practitioners (GPs), nurses, and specialist doctors have recently been established in the Italian context, with the main aim of improving integrated care for chronic diseases.
Purposes:
The aim of the study was to assess whether the increased professional diversity of PCUs has resulted in an improvement in the integrated care of type II diabetes and to identify a potential mechanism mediating this effect.
Methodology/Approach:
We analyzed 213 PCUs, comparing their performance in integrated type II diabetes care at two time points. Using social categorization theory and a fixed effects regression analysis, we tested a mediation model in which the frequency of communication among GPs in the PCUs, that is, within-subgroup communication, mediates the relationship between PCU professional diversity and team performance in diabetes care.
Findings:
We show that when the professional diversity of the PCUs increases, integrated care of type II diabetes improves and better meets the standards of optimal care. Within-GP subgroup communication works as a mediating mechanism that translates the PCU professional diversity into better team performance. The mediation effect, however, is curvilinear. Beyond certain levels, within-subgroup communication can hamper PCUs' capacity to work collaboratively in integrated type II diabetes care.
Practice Implications:
The article suggests that, when creating interprofessional primary care teams, managers might be able to steer teams toward a better performance by encouraging communication among peers of the same profession.
Related Concept Videos
01:21Barriers to Effective Communication II
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
01:18Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-II
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist (PT) aims to restore function or prevent additional impairment in a patient following an injury or disease. Massage, heat, cold, water, sonar waves, exercises, and electrical stimulation are some treatments used by PTs to treat...
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...
01:27Levels of Communication II: Organizational, Public, and Group Dynamics
01:27Peripheral Artery Disease III: Interprofessional Care
01:29Levels of Communication I: Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and Small Group
We can participate in these relationships through verbal, nonverbal, and mediated communication. We engage in verbal communication when we use words during our interaction to convey specific meanings. On the other hand, nonverbal communication refers to various factors that can impact how we understand each other—for example, facial expressions.
We interact with others using mediated technologies like the...