Discussion
The advent of the new millennium came with a new positive attitude towards the importance of interdisciplinary healthcare teams. As opposed to preferring health care professionals to work in surroundings that are parallel, interdisciplinary philosophy advocates for the need for collaborative efforts about the planning of treatment and discharge procedures for all the patients (Robin, Bonifas& Gray, 2013).
Moreover, interdisciplinary health care teams are inspired by the idea that one individual can do unique things that others cannot and only through the teaming up of individuals can greatness be realized. The main aim of developing interdisciplinary teamwork resonates with inclusive effort and a greater respect of involving medical social work into the healthcare system.
Within the field of healthcare, patients may come across myriad specialized professionals all of whom may be a representation of a unique treatment schema and intellectual model of healthcare. Some of the medical specializations may include cardiology, nursing, psychology, neurology, emergency medicine, trauma, interventional radiology, gastroenterology, and physical medicine among others (Robin, Bonifas& Gray, 2013).
It is worth mentioning that every specified expertise revolves around well-defined levels of engagement. For instance, a neurologist would only be part and parcel of a treatment team the moment he or she approached by a hospitalist physician.
Ideally, the neurology team would not be concerned with the psychosocial components of any given the patient and therefore would not contribute in any way to the discharge planning process.
Professionals in the field of healthcare need to be disciplined, respectful, flexible, and open to communication to be successful in interdisciplinary team settings (Mitchell et al., 2012).
Whenever communication is compromised, then it becomes tough to realize treatment that is safe and timely. What's more, minus flexibility and respect, teams from alternative disciplines may feel overwhelmed or hassled to give healthy insight or come up with suggestions for the care of a specific patient?
In summary, some of the most essential characteristics that underpin interdisciplinary teamwork revolves around constructive management and leadership attributes; structures and strategies for communication, individualized rewards, training and career development; appropriate skill mix; proper procedures and instrumentation (resources); the right mix of skills; helpful team climate; personal attributes that foster interdisciplinary teamwork; precision of vision; excellence and results of care; and valuing and being accommodative to roles.
All methods, theories, and practices of effective patient care are characterized by challenges (Robin, Bonifas& Gray, 2013). When taking part in interdisciplinary teamwork, social workers may go through a couple of difficulties that may have to do with being given an ear, mutual respect, and patient safety.
Secondly, it is very easy for doctors and physicians to look down upon social workers as people that are devoid of enough clinical knowledge and ones not befitting of making critical treatment decisions (Mitchell et al., 2012).
Besides , being that social workers have a history of not being adequately rewarded and serving as assistants to doctors, they have time and again been denied the clinical respect they deserve. The lack of respect denies them power and position within team settings; an issue that makes social workers unappreciated in their roles and responsibilities.