Tenacious team, precarious patient: A phenomenological inquiry into interprofessional collaboration during ICU resuscitations.

AIMS: The study aims to explore the lived experiences of interprofessional collaboration among ICU nurses, doctors, and respiratory therapists in managing resuscitations in the ICUs. DESIGN: Descriptive phenomenological design, underpinned by Husserl's philosophy. METHODS: ICU nurses, doctors and respiratory therapists who have experience in managing resuscitations with the interprofessional team were recruited through purposive sampling from April to December 2019. Sixteen ICU professionals participated in individual, semi-structured, in-depth interviews which were audio recorded, and transcribed verbatim. Findings were analysed using Colaizzi's 7-step analysis. RESULTS: The essence of interprofessional collaboration during resuscitations can be described in four main themes. 'Ruminating about professional boundaries' signifies how ICU professionals acknowledged the roles and boundaries that surrounded their scope of practice during resuscitations. 'Rallying the interprofessional team' illustrates how the interprofessional team rapidly band together amongst the aid and hindrance of contextual enablers and inhibitors. 'Responding to interprofessional conflicts' depicts how intra- and interprofessional tensions can occur during resuscitations that can impact patient safety. 'Reaching collective leadership' proposes enhanced resuscitation care through the collective leadership of the interprofessional team. CONCLUSION: Resuscitations represent a precarious turn of events for the critically ill patient where the interprofessional team undergoes a cyclic sequence of teamwork and conflict while attempting to drive the resuscitation into a positive outcome. As ICU professionals attempt to optimise interprofessional collaboration during resuscitations, findings call for enhanced team training initiatives encompassing the interprofessional team, with an emphasis on collective leadership. IMPACT: ICU professionals experience of interprofessional collaboration during resuscitations is poorly understood. By understanding their lived experience, targeted interventions to improve interprofessional collaboration can be conceptualised and implemented. Findings will set pace for future evaluation research on interprofessional collaboration and patient outcomes during resuscitations.

Interprofessional collaboration during medical emergencies among doctors, nurses, and respiratory therapists in the intensive care unit: A phenomenological study protocol.

AIM: The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of interprofessional collaboration among nurses, doctors, and respiratory therapists during medical emergencies in the intensive care unit. DESIGN: Descriptive phenomenological study. METHOD: Participants will be recruited through purposive sampling with maximum variation across the ICUs in a tertiary hospital in Singapore. Guided by data saturation, data collection will include individual semi-structured interviews with ICU nurses, physicians, and respiratory therapist who have attended to medical emergencies such as cardiopulmonary arrest or difficult airway management in the ICUs. Interviews will be audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed via Colaizzi's descriptive phenomenology method. Research Ethics Committee approval was sought from the National Healthcare Group, Domain Specific Review Board (April 2019). The study is funded by the National Healthcare Group - Health Outcomes and Medical Education Research Grant (April 2019). The study is expected to be concluded by April 2020. DISCUSSION: Whilst interprofessional collaboration remains a major interest among nursing research, there is a paucity of evidence surrounding interprofessional collaboration in the specific context of medical emergencies in the ICUs. This is especially crucial as the failure of interprofessional collaboration during medical emergencies can be catastrophic to patient safety. Hence, this study will adopt a qualitative approach to contribute to the evidence base surrounding this lesser known phenomenon. The findings generated from this study will inform future team training initiatives, advance nursing leadership initiatives, and identify barriers and facilitators towards fostering greater interprofessional collaboration during medical emergencies. IMPACT: The evidence gained from this study contributes to the limited knowledge base of interprofessional collaboration during medical emergencies. Findings will have vast impact on nursing and interprofessional programs such as crisis leadership and management. The findings could also inform practice frameworks during medical emergencies to support interprofessional collaboration and optimize patient care.