Teamwork training with nursing and medical students: does the method matter? Results of an interinstitutional, interdisciplinary collaboration.
OBJECTIVE
The authors conducted a randomised controlled trial of four pedagogical methods commonly used to deliver teamwork training and measured the effects of each method on the acquisition of student teamwork knowledge, skills, and attitudes.


METHODS
The authors recruited 203 senior nursing students and 235 fourth-year medical students (total N = 438) from two major universities for a 1-day interdisciplinary teamwork training course. All participants received a didactic lecture and then were randomly assigned to one of four educational methods didactic (control), audience response didactic, role play and human patient simulation. Student performance was assessed for teamwork attitudes, knowledge and skills using: (a) a 36-item teamwork attitudes instrument (CHIRP), (b) a 12-item teamwork knowledge test, (c) a 10-item standardised patient (SP) evaluation of student teamwork skills performance and (d) a 20-item modification of items from the Mayo High Performance Teamwork Scale (MHPTS).


RESULTS
All four cohorts demonstrated an improvement in attitudes (F(1,370) = 48.7, p = 0.001) and knowledge (F(1,353) = 87.3, p = 0.001) pre- to post-test. No educational modality appeared superior for attitude (F(3,370) = 0.325, p = 0.808) or knowledge (F(3,353) = 0.382, p = 0.766) acquisition. No modality demonstrated a significant change in teamwork skills (F(3,18) = 2.12, p = 0.134).


CONCLUSIONS
Each of the four modalities demonstrated significantly improved teamwork knowledge and attitudes, but no modality was demonstrated to be superior. Institutions should feel free to utilise educational modalities, which are best supported by their resources to deliver interdisciplinary teamwork training.
Hobgood
Cherri
C
Department of Emergency Medicine, UNC School of Medicine, CB 7594, UNC Hospitals, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA. hobgood@med.unc.edu
Sherwood
Gwen
G
Frush
Karen
K
Hollar
David
D
Maynard
Laura
L
Foster
Beverly
B
Sawning
Susan
S
Woodyard
Donald
D
Durham
Carol
C
Wright
Melanie
M
Taekman
Jeffrey
J
D015331:Cohort Studies; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training / Q000379:methods*; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D009740:Nursing Staff; D009746:Nursing, Team; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires