Communication

Communication is the process by which information is clearly and accurately exchanged
among team members.

No team can succeed without effective communication. It is the critical lifeline.

Conversely, communication breakdowns are a contributing factor to team underperformance.

Ineffective communication is the root cause of a significant percent of sentinel events (medical errors)
reported in clinical settings.

How, then, can we ignore this?

Experience has shown that there are multiple barriers to effective communication:

• Language
• Distractions
• Personalities
• Workload
• Varying communication styles
• Conflict
• Lack of information verification
• Shift change, ineffective hand-offs
• Failure to involve patient and family

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