Interprofessional negotiations in biopsychosocial pain rehabilitation: a need for silent bargains

Communicating effectively, including the ability to negotiate, has been claimed to be key competencies in interprofessional practice. However, these day-to-day contributions to interprofessional teamwork are not yet sufficiently understood. The aim of this article is to explore the day-to-day interprofessional negotiations in biopsychosocial pain rehabilitation. A qualitative design with an ethnographic approach was applied to the overall study. Participant observation of interprofessional encounters and clinical encounters in a pain rehabilitation ward was undertaken in 2016 for a period of 19 weeks. Intermittent interviews with 12 professionals were conducted. Data were analyzed in an abductive process using thematic analysis. We present the results as two themes: 1) Silent conflicting interests in the office, and 2) Silent dissatisfaction with meetings. The study showed that the team members had opportunities to negotiate in interprofessional offices and meetings, while they perceived insufficient time for discussion, and their individual work being interrupted by each other in the offices. They did not discuss their dissatisfaction, but silently bargained on how to spend time together. Professionals can contribute to teamwork through silent bargains that can promote a low level of conflict and thereby preserve a good workflow.