Capital & Coast DHB implements surgical team training in Australia

Surgical teams in Australia are being put through their paces in a new kind of training that challenges them to improve their communication and teamwork. The national team training intervention program for surgical teams is being implemented at Capital & Coast District Health Board (DHB). It is funded by the Accident Compensation Corporation, delivered by the University of Auckland, and supported by the Health Quality and Safety Commission.

“The program aims to improve outcomes for patients undergoing surgery by focusing on communication and teamwork between operating room staff,” said DHB project manager Noreen McMahon, who is managing the implementation of training hospital staffs to deliver the program and teach surgical teams in real time in their departments.

The training encompasses vascular, Otorhinolaryngology (also known as Ear, Nose and Throat or ENT), orthopedics, urology and general surgery. It includes about eight hours of interactive sessions including simulated surgical cases, debriefs and communication skills training for all five surgical specialties, and it engages each member of the multidisciplinary surgical teams.