title: Intergroup relationships and quality improvement in healthcare.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Intergroup problems among physicians, nurses and administrators in healthcare settings sometimes retard such settings' ability to foster enhanced quality of care. Without knowledge of the social dynamics that generate the difficulties, it is impossible to address some crucial issues that may affect quality initiatives.
  
  
  METHODS
  This paper reviews three types of dynamics, social identity, communities of practice and socialisation into particular professional identities that affect relationships among professional groups in healthcare settings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A suggestion is made for the creation of cross-boundary communities of practice, socialisation into them and dual, superordinate identities as a means to foster more effective intergroup dynamics and, thus, contribute to a greater quality of care.
authors: Department of Organization Studies, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467-3808, USA. bartunek@bc.edu
authors: Jean M
authors: JM
authors: Bartunek
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D058996:Quality Improvement; D012933:Social Identification