Introduction

video describes the importance of teams and the role of dentists as leaders on teams and in their community.

Objectives

Describe the mulitdisciplinary and interdisciplinary team approaches and differentiate them from other health care models.
Identify the members of the team and describe their competencies and range of expertise.
Identify conditions under which it is appropriate to include each of the consultative disciplinies in the care of patients with HIV.
Understand and recognize the phases of team development
Recognize individual styles of communication and leadership and how diverse styles contribute to team function.
Discuss the collaborative skills of the team that benefit patient care.
Recognize barriers that affect communication exchange among providers, patients, their families, and communities.
Recognize sources and types of conflict in teamwork.
Identify strategies for managing conflict in teams

Healthcare teams allows for the expansion of healthcare expertise beyond the single or solo provider or practitioner. Healthcare teams have the ability to go beyond the knowledge of one practitioner or the resources available to one practitioner. Team healthcare delivery improves communication and networking, which areessential for comprehensive and effective treatment planning and patient care. In addition healthcare team planning and teaming reduces the sense of provider isolation in rural areas that is common in many dental practices.

The focus of a healthcare team is the patient and this is what makes these teams different from teams found in other businesses. Whether your team works in a private dental office, a community health center, or a special patient clinic in a hospital they all have common characteristics.

The following are some basic elements that are essential to building an effective health care team.

Purpose
Goals
Roles - individual member roles, accountability for specific outcomes
Relationships - Good relationship are important to health care teams and ultimately these relationships focus on patient outcomes. The patient and members of the team rely on the knowledge and experience of each team member and
Activities and functions
Coordination and leadership

Patient Case

One of the reasons for using a team approach to provide health care service is the growing realization that any one professional does not have the necessary skills or knowledge to properly handle a patient with complex problems. The team approach integrates the unique skills and knowledge of medical specialists and reduces the potential for uncoordinated and contradictory treatment plans. HIV/AIDS patients face an interplay of chronic and acute medical and pyschosocial problems that may be too complex for one provider to handle alone and many of these problem have a profound affect on the dental treatment. Assembling a group of providers may enhance the care plan and provide knowledge from multiple disciplines. Providers can increase coordination by working together and the client will have important issues addressed in a comprehensive and integrated care plan. Dentists, physicians, nurses, social workers, and other providers must recognize when referrals to other providers are necessary and know what outcomes to expect. Knowledge of the skills of other health providers is increasing important for all medically compromised patients, but is critical in the care of patients with HIV/AIDS.

Present a short case in text form Harlem United that illustrates a complex case. Should include dental, medical, social work, legal, and psychiatric

An appropriate team to deal with patient X's problems might include...

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