Section 1: Overview of Key Concepts and Tools
This section provides an overview of the key concepts in the Introduction. More extensive explanations and illustrations are provided in section 2; methods for teaching the introduction's concepts are in section 3. Each of the four modules that follow also includes information about implementing TeamSTEPPS, including whether an organization is ready for implementation, in section 4.
Key Concepts
Team Competency Outcomes
TeamSTEPPS requires clearly defined and appropriate team structure and the use of four teachable-learnable skills: Communication, Team Leadership, Situation Monitoring, and Mutual Support. The TeamSTEPPS framework reflects the connections between these four skills and how they contribute to the knowledge, attitudes, and sustained high performance needed to achieve highly reliable, safe, and effective care for every patient.
Knowledge
- Shared mental model
Attitudes
- Mutual trust
- Team orientation
Performance
- Adaptability
- Accuracy
- Productivity
- Efficiency
- Safety
- High reliability
Sustainability
- Creating an enduring culture of safety by maintaining and reinforcing essential knowledge, attitudes, and performance over time despite staff turnover, competing priorities, adversity (e.g., pandemics), and risk of complacency.
Key Skills for Effective Teamwork
As shown in the TeamSTEPPS framework, the four skills that contribute to team effectiveness are:
- Communication: A verbal and nonverbal process by which information can be clearly and accurately exchanged among team members.
- Team Leadership: The ability to lead a team within a multi-team system to maximize the effectiveness of team members by ensuring that team actions are understood, changes in information are shared, and team members have the necessary resources.
- Situation Monitoring: Process of actively scanning and assessing situational elements to gain information or understanding, or to maintain awareness to support team functioning.
- Mutual Support: Ability to anticipate and support team members' needs through accurate knowledge about their responsibilities and workload.
