Interdisciplinary collaboration

Abstract

Interdisciplinary collaboration is a well-established concept of delivering high-quality health care systems, yet the operationalization of collaborative action within various professional roles remains a major challenge in healthcare environments. Communication breakdowns and inconsistent teamwork among physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals have been linked to adverse patient safety events, reduced care coordination, and inefficiencies within healthcare systems. While the literature discusses interdisciplinary collaboration often, there is still a gap between conceptual understanding and the implementation of evidence-based administrative strategies that consistently support coordinated team processes. This capstone combines peer-reviewed literature and nationally recognized healthcare guidelines to investigate administrative practices that create interdisciplinary collaboration at the organizational level of health care. Focus is on measures that advance communication skills, define roles among professionals, and facilitate team effort at different care environments. Emphasizing system-level barriers to communication and patient safety, this study details practicable solutions as well as the steps that healthcare administrators can take to improve team performance and organizational results.