Introduction
- Conflict management: a crucial part of the clinical environment;
- Potential sources of conflict: hierarchy issues and interdisciplinary concerns;
- Case under analysis: misunderstanding between an anesthesiologist and a surgeon;
- Cause: a misconception caused by underlying assumptions;
- Solution: focus on negotiation, collaboration, and compromise (Sinskey et al., 2019).
Conflict Analysis
- Causes of the conflict: misunderstanding between the anesthesiologist and the surgeon;
- Further exacerbated by the hierarchal issues in the clinical context;
- Failure to reconci9le the interests of the surgeon and the anesthesiologist;
- Outcome: an obvious and continuous confrontation affecting the patient’s well-being.
Possible Outcomes: Core Risks
- Risks of failing to achieve agreement: adverse effects suffered by the patient;
- Threat of an allergy due to the adverse response to the medication;
- Risks of blood pressure drop or increase and the associated concerns;
- Development of a heart disease due to the response to the anesthesia;
- Strong necessity to introduce an effective conflict management approach;
Conflict Management Strategy
- Foundational step: introducing a common goal to align the interests;
- Second step: integrating the relevant values to ensure alignment of interests;
- Shaping the participants’ vision and focus to divert them from personal issues;
- Core concepts: beneficence, non-maleficence, patient’s interests
Addressing Emotions
- Emotional competence: core focus of conflict management education;
- Recognition and acknowledgement of emotions as the key to conflict mitigation;
- Ability to reconcile with one’s emotions and proceed to objective assessment of the situation;
- Approaching conflicts from a rational perspective.
Leadership Strategy
- Changes in the leadership approach: focus on recognizing stakeholders’ needs;
- Emphasis on the understanding of the participants’ emotional needs;
- Promotion of value-driven decision-making;
- Emphasis on improved information management as the means of minimizing the threat of a conflict;
- Active enhancement of interdisciplinary collaboration;
- Promotion of effective interdisciplinary collaboration techniques.
Educating the Participants
- Conflict management education: a crucial step for ending the intervention;
- Promotion of conflict management education to the stakeholders in question;
- Cultural competence as the basis for effective conflict management;
- Proper understanding of the needs of the parties involved to avoid confrontations in the workplace;
- Active focus on the patient’s needs as opposed to personal issues in the workplace environment.
Conclusion
- Conflict management principles and values: basis for effective conflict resolution;
- Promotion of collaboration and compromise;
- Focus on negotiation and effective leadership;
- Development of new communication channels;
- Enforcement of healthcare values and ethics.
References
Anderson, R. J., Bloch, S., Armstrong, M., Stone, P. C., & Low, J. T. (2019). Communication between healthcare professionals and relatives of patients approaching the end-of-life: a systematic review of qualitative evidence. Palliative medicine, 33(8), 926-941. Web.
Schot, E., Tummers, L., & Noordegraaf, M. (2020). Working on working together. A systematic review on how healthcare professionals contribute to interprofessional collaboration. Journal of interprofessional care, 34(3), 332-342. Web.
Sinskey, J. L., Chang, J. M., Shibata, G. S., Infosino, A. J., & Rouine-Rapp, K. (2019). Applying conflict management strategies to the pediatric operating room. Anesthesia & Analgesia, 129(4), 1109-1117. Web.
Thomas, P., Baldwin, C., Bissett, B., Boden, I., Gosselink, R., Granger, C. L., Hodgson, C., Jonesjk, A. M., EKholm, M., Moses, R., Ntoumenopoulos, G., Parry, S. M., Patman, S., & van der Lee, L. (2020). Physiotherapy management for COVID-19 in the acute hospital setting: clinical practice recommendations. Journal of physiotherapy, 66(2), 73-82.