The implementation of team structures is not a simple process and does not necessarily result in success; it is not enough just to put people together in teams and presume that everybody agrees on what to do (Allen and Hecht 2004).
Furthermore, the implementation of team development interventions can be recommended and should be supported.
Organizational culture, values set by practice leaders, and other factors influence implementation of team-based care.
A slightly different approach was used in the large-scale implementation of team-training throughout the VA.
The development and implementation of team-training programmes in acute care settings has grown dramatically in the last decade with improvements in content, methods and evaluation desgins.
Through a national network of team resource centres, individuals interested in leading the implementation of team-training within their organisation could become TeamSTEPPS Master Trainers by participating in an intensive 3-day training session.
Although the explicitness of formal background for team work, such as well-described functions and responsibilities of team members could be seen as limiting circumstance in highly integrative teams [ 18], in the initial stage of the implementation of team-based health care practice, when team collaboration is low, it seems to be an essential background for team functionality.
However, despite the emphasis on team training and the implementation of team behavior [ 2, 3] over the past decade and, more recently, the well-documented benefits of interprofessional education and interprofessional collaborative practice [ 9], communication failure between healthcare team members remains a frequent cause of patient harm [ 10].
Worker participation in risk management is not a static concept and has increased over the past 35 years with the implementation of team approaches, management systems, corporate responsibility, and right to know and act movements (Gallagher 1997; Jensen 2002; Lynn 1997; Shearn 2005).
The study found that the implementation of interdisciplinary teams reduced hospital lengths of stay by 36%.
