Leadership and teamwork in anesthesia – Making use of human factors to improve clinical performance

Abstract

Intuitively and empirically, leadership and teamwork are essential for team performance, patient safety, and patient outcomes in anesthesia and perioperative care. Team members have different needs and priorities during dynamically changing perioperative conditions. Team leaders may require recommendations on leadership practices to ensure patient safety while maintaining efficient work flow. Current research supports the concept that little explicit leadership is usually required during standardized routine work, but active and even directive leadership is important in unexpected, novel or stressful situations. Inviting and appreciating speaking up behaviour may further improve team performance. Team training and simulation methods can enhance teamwork and leadership behaviour. Future research will hopefully fill persisting knowledge gaps.