Title:
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Multiprofessional education and teamwork in NHS primary care services
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This thesis is presented as a mixed methods case study of the perceptions of primary care professionals in relation to two key objectives. Firstly to establish key stakeholders' perceptions of the existing culture and change processes required to deliver effective multiprofessional education and teamwork in NHS primary care services and secondly, to gain key stakeholders' vision for the future of workforce and staff development to ensure effective teamworking for the delivery of patient care. The setting for the study focussed upon primary care services delivered within two NHS primary care organisations in the South East of England and the majority of respondents were primary health care practitioners working within these two organisational settings. This study produced several conclusions. There was a need to move towards a common or shared culture which would require the blurring or breaking down of existing uniprofessional barriers and development of 'inter-professional trust' together with the implementation of an organisation wide learning culture. Failures in collaboration and teamwork can also be linked to inappropriate or lack of communication between professional groups. Evidence also supports the requirement to implement organisation wide staff appraisal and individual training development planning. Workforce Development Confederation (WDC) Planning needs to be fully integrated within the context of local Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and Higher Education establishments at both under-graduate and post-graduate levels to assist in the delivery of the correct common learning syllabi, skill mix and skills escalator training requirements for primary care services. Power sharing in primary care team settings was a particular requirement in the move towards true team collaboration and trust. The need to modernise the traditional role, whereby the GP has acted as 'gatekeeper' in the primary care setting, towards making more effective use of all other members of the primary healthcare team was found to be critical.
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