Dimensions of Nurse-Physician Communication

Dimensions of Nurse-Physician Communication by Rachel Malek Hamdan MS, American University of Beirut, 2011 BS, American University of Beirut, 2006 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration Walden University January 2017 Abstract Hospital leaders set quality and safety as high priorities in their strategic goals. Improving the quality and safety of patient care requires improving internal processes that have direct implications for patient care. Hospital leaders need to improve health care providers’ communication as part of improving quality and safety. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of strategies health care administrators use to guideHospital leaders set quality and safety as high priorities in their strategic goals. Improving the quality and safety of patient care requires improving internal processes that have direct implications for patient care. Hospital leaders need to improve health care providers’ communication as part of improving quality and safety. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of strategies health care administrators use to guide nurse-physician communication patterns in a university medical center in the Middle East. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore communication strategies that health care administrators use to guide nurse-physician communication. Relational coordination informed the conceptual framework of the study. The research question was designed to identify strategies health care administrators use to guide nurse-physician communication patterns. Data were collected and thematically analyzed through semistructured interviews with 5 administrators, 3 nurses, and 3 physicians, and the hospital policy manual. Analysis revealed 4 major themes: nurses’ empowerment, nurses and physicians’ accountability, multidisciplinary care delivery, and mutual respect. Strategies were identified through the exploration and analysis of the 4 themes. The key findings included that administrators considered holding nurses and physicians accountable for their work to be a key strategy that guides communication, and that effective communication is directly connected to mutual respect among different teams and individuals. The implications for social change include improved patient care and safety, and increased job satisfaction through health care leaders applying the identified strategies to enhance nurse-physician communication. Dimensions of Nurse-Physician Communication by Rachel Malek Hamdan MS, American University of Beirut, 2011 BS, American University of Beirut, 2006 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration Walden University January 2017 Dedication This work is dedicated to my parents, Malek and Noura. يندلا صلختل كبحب نانبل ايو . يندلا سمّشتبو يندلا جلتتب Acknowledgments This work would not have been possible without the support of many people. I thank Dr. Franz Michael Gottleib, my committee chairperson, for his leadership and encouragement throughout this journey. I sincerely appreciate his exceptional expertise, countless reviews, and round-the-clock availability. I also thank him for his constant efforts in expediting the process. I also thank Dr. Denise Land, my second committee member, and Dr. James Savard, my URR, for their efforts in ensuring that this dissertation meets the highest scholastic levels. I thank the administration of the data collection site for believing in the importance of research and evidence-based practice. I also thank the study participants for their time. I truly appreciate their input that served as a basis of the study outcomes. I thank my close friends for being there for me each in their unique way. I thank them for going out of their way in helping me reach my goal. I also thank them for listening to my endless nagging; and continuously encouraging me throughout my journey. Finally, I thank my family. All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my family. I cannot thank you enough for giving me the strength and determination to complete this work.