Learning and improving together in nursing homes developing an interprofessional learning and working culture

A recent publication highlights the building of an interprofessional learning and working culture within nursing homes. With the support of coaches, teams of practitioners, nurses, caregivers and assistants themselves took the lead to strengthen their collaboration and shared learning. This led to 21 concrete actions, each making a valuable contribution to the further development of interprofessional collaboration in nursing homes. IQ Health researcher Dr. Getty Huisman-de Waal was involved in the study and co-author of this publication.

In a collaborative effort, 11 teams from six different nursing homes worked to develop an interprofessional learning and working culture. The 21 actions that were applied in practice can be divided into two categories. For example, it was found that it is necessary to first get to know each other well or work together on themes such as person-centered care to establish interprofessional collaboration. The working environment depended on the choice the teams made. For example, collaboration on a geriatric rehabilitation unit is more intense because of the need to set goals and treat clients quickly. This rapid process also promotes peer finding in collaboration, which is essential for an effective interprofessional team. At the same time, physical factors, such as the distance between practitioners and care workers within a building, also appear to affect collaboration. When practitioners are further away, it takes more effort to get to know each other and work together efficiently. In such cases, teams need to spend extra time and energy building relationships, understanding responsibilities, tasks and each other's strengths. The teams did this by creating vlogs, but also by, for example, walking into each other's offices or departments or having coffee together. These findings show the importance of tailoring approaches to interprofessional collaboration in nursing homes. The teams that succeed in this create a culture where learning and working together is the norm, with positive effects on both person-centered care and job satisfaction.

Read the full publication of the EVIDENCE 2.0 project at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39306357/

For more information on the EVIDENCE 2.0 project: https://www.han.nl/projecten/2020/evidence-2.0/