Abstract
BackgroundWithin existing research in health and medicine, the nature of knowledge on how teams conduct safe work practices has yet to be properly explored.MethodsWe address this concern by exploring the varieties in which knowledge is expressed during interdisciplinary surgical operations. Specifically, the study was conducted in a surgical section of a Norwegian regional general hospital, between January and April of 2010, by means of an ethnographic design combining detailed non-participant observations, conversations and semi-structured interviews.ResultsBased on an analysis of the gathered data, we identify three particular themes in how knowledge is expressed by operating room personnel: (i) the ability and variety individuals demonstrate in handling multiple sources of information, before reaching a particular decision, (ii) the variety of ways awareness or anticipation of future events is expressed, and (iii) the different ways sudden and unexpected situations are handled by the individual team members.ConclusionsWe conclude that these facets of knowledge bring different insights into how safe work practices are achieved at an individual and team level in surgical operations, thus adding to the existing understanding of the nature of knowledge in safe work practices in surgical operations. Future research should focus on exploring and documenting the relationships between various elements of knowledge and safe work practices, in different surgical settings and countries.
Highlights
Within existing research in health and medicine, the nature of knowledge on how teams conduct safe work practices has yet to be properly explored
The aim of this paper is to explore and document the nature of the knowledge interdisciplinary teams use in surgical operations, in order to achieve safe work practices
From an evidence-based medicine (EBM) perspective, knowledge rests on the model of technical rationality, where an individual practices problem solving according to established scientific theories and techniques [[1], p. 21]
Summary
Within existing research in health and medicine, the nature of knowledge on how teams conduct safe work practices has yet to be properly explored. The dominance of the technical rationality seems to prevail, much of which can be attributed to weaknesses in the identification, understanding and training of health care specific team skills [6,7], in the to explore and document the nature of the knowledge interdisciplinary teams use in surgical operations, in order to achieve safe work practices. From an evidence-based medicine (EBM) perspective, knowledge rests on the model of technical rationality, where an individual practices problem solving according to established scientific theories and techniques [[1], p. In this paper we define knowledge as comprised of explicit/encoded aspects shaped by text-book understandings of various procedures, and as comprised of tacit aspects shaped through experience and exposure to various clinical situations
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