RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Correlates of non-technical skills in surgery: a prospective study
JF BMJ Open
JO BMJ Open
FD British Medical Journal Publishing Group
SP e014480
DO 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-014480
VO 7
IS 1
A1 Brigid M Gillespie
A1 Emma Harbeck
A1 Evelyn Kang
A1 Catherine Steel
A1 Nicole Fairweather
A1 Wendy Chaboyer
YR 2017
UL http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/7/1/e014480.abstract
AB Background Communication and teamwork failures have frequently been identified as the root cause of adverse events and complications in surgery. Few studies have examined contextual factors that influence teams’ non-technical skills (NTS) in surgery. The purpose of this prospective study was to identify and describe correlates of NTS.Methods We assessed NTS of teams and professional role at 2 hospitals using the revised 23-item Non-TECHnical Skills (NOTECHS) and its subscales (communication, situational awareness, team skills, leadership and decision-making). Over 6 months, 2 trained observers evaluated teams’ NTS using a structured form. Interobserver agreement across hospitals ranged from 86% to 95%. Multiple regression models were developed to describe associations between operative time, team membership, miscommunications, interruptions, and total NOTECHS and subscale scores.Results We observed 161 surgical procedures across 8 teams. The total amount of explained variance in NOTECHS and its 5 subscales ranged from 14% (adjusted R2 0.12, p<0.001) to 24% (adjusted R2 0.22, p<0.001). In all models, inverse relationships between the total number of miscommunications and total number of interruptions and teams’ NTS were observed.Conclusions Miscommunications and interruptions impact on team NTS performance.