Indian Journal of Science and Technology

Abstract

Effective communication is a necessary component of nursing practice and can affect the quality of performance of medical teams. Communication failures within the healthcare team can compromise both patient safety and medical outcomes. This study examined how the performance of a team of nursing students was affected by the way they communicated within the team. Nursing students attended a simulation-based training session on oxygenation therapy for COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) patients, and their participation in the class was video recorded. The videos were analyzed according to a nursing performance and communication scale that included 5 categories relating to nursing processes (assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation) plus a miscellaneous communication category. We determined a positive relationship between the performance of the team and the frequency of comments in all communication categories except for that of diagnosis. A negative relationship was identified between the performance of the team and the frequency of miscellaneous comments. A multiple regression analysis revealed that comments regarding planning as well as miscellaneous comments were strong independent predictors of the team’s performance. These findings indicate that the performance of a nursing team has a significant relationship with team communication related to the assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation of nursing care.
Keywords: Communication, Nursing, Performance, Simulation