Studies have shown that healthcare team motivation strongly correlates with leadership style, recognition, workload balance, and communication culture. (E.g., Shanafelt et al., 2017; West et al., 2016)
Communication culture refers to the shared norms, practices, and attitudes that shape how information is exchanged within a healthcare team or organization. It affects how openly, frequently, and effectively members communicate, especially across hierarchical boundaries.
A strong communication culture is especially critical in neurosurgery due to:
Poor communication culture can lead to:
In general, effective communication is crucial in the field of neurosurgery, as it involves collaboration among a team of healthcare professionals, including neurosurgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, and other specialists. Briefings, whether in the form of meetings, presentations, or written documents, play a vital role in ensuring that everyone involved in a case is well-informed and on the same page.
If “Neurosurgical Briefing” is a specific resource or tool tailored for neurosurgery communication, its effectiveness would depend on factors such as the content provided, its relevance to the field, user reviews, and adoption by the neurosurgical community.
Communication about patients' goals and planned and potential treatment is central to advance care planning. Undertaking or confirming advance care plans is also essential to preoperative preparation, particularly among patients who are frail or will undergo high-risk surgery.
In a systematic review related to nurse-physician collaboration, House and Havens reported that nurses and physicians held different perceptions of collaboration, shared decision making, teamwork and communication 1).
Communication failure and lack of collaboration among caregivers have been identified as the leading root cause of sentinel events and a primary contributing factor of adverse events and near misses in the clinical setting
of which 15-20% occurred in the operative setting
2).
The Institute of Medicine (2003) reported that more than 98,000 patients die each year due to preventable medical errors.
Residents are encouraged to voice doubts without fear.
Nurses contribute actively to preoperative planning.
Surgical errors are debriefed transparently.
Monthly meetings are held for open dialogue and shared learning.
Improving communication culture requires intentional, systemic changes. Below are effective strategies: