Coaching Strategies Used to Support Interprofessional Teams in 3 Primary Care Centers

Area of Science:

• Healthcare quality improvement
• Interprofessional collaboration
• Advanced practice nursing

Background:

• Clinical nurse specialists and advanced practice registered nurses utilize healthcare team coaching to improve interprofessional practice and healthcare quality.
• While coaching's benefits are recognized, specific strategies employed in practice remain underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the coaching strategies employed by an experienced healthcare team coach.
• Focus on advancing interprofessional care and teamwork within primary care settings.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative description study within a larger project aimed at increasing interprofessional practice.
• Analysis of 35 audio-recorded and transcribed coaching telephone calls using content analysis.
• Study conducted in 3 primary care clinics in the midwestern United States.

Main Results:

• Identification of 12 distinct coaching strategies.
• Strategies categorized into five groups: enhancing team development, affirming team work, facilitating progress, providing resources, and connecting work to theoretical frameworks.

Conclusions:

• The identified coaching strategies can guide clinical nurse specialists and advanced practice registered nurses in fostering interprofessional collaborative practice.
• Further research is recommended to evaluate the effectiveness of these strategies and develop a comprehensive healthcare team coaching model.